The Cruelty of Fated Love
by SocialDisease609
Summary: Soulmate AU- The 100 is still sent down to earn their pardons by seeing if Earth is survivable, but this time, Lexa arrives much earlier, and when Clarke and Lexa discover that they are each other's soulmates, their struggle to accommodate duty and destiny is the greatest battle they'll ever experience. Violence, sex, & swearing- the trifecta of most desired fics.
1. Chapter 1

Lexa sat in the lobby with the other novitiates, waiting for the gate to rise to begin the conclave. There's a certain kind of nerve that fires off when you know that you might be waiting to die: That this could be your last day. That you're going to find out what's on the other side of the living world. There is no sense of curiosity or readiness, just fear, anxiety, and nausea. She wasn't ready to die, and she was sure no one else in this room was either. Typically Lexa was brave and unnerved in the face of battle, but this was different. Odds of survival felt higher in battle than in comparison to the Conclave, where it was a guarantee that only one person would make it out alive.

This was it. She would have no one else to talk to after this moment if she did not succeed. Desperate to leave a legacy, a last imprint on the world if she should fail, she walked to the wall opposite of her and the other waiting candidates. It was the wall that all novitiates had visited before their conclaves- a wall to leave their name, their dreams, beliefs, and names of loved ones, anything that they wanted to be remembered by forever after they passed through that gate. It was covered completely, leaving little space for future novitiates.

Lexa picked up one of the many thin paintbrushes by the wall and dipped it in the bowl of thick black paint. Lifting the brush to her arm, she delicately swirled an infinity symbol on her left inner-wrist, the sacred symbol of the Commanders. She had never received any communication from her soulmate, so she had always assumed that they just weren't old enough yet to begin the soulmate search that was triggered once you became sixteen, or just simply that they did not want to communicate. Yet she hoped, on this fateful day of her nineteenth year, that somewhere out in the world, her soulmate would sense her desperation in needing their presence. That they would understand the importance of this symbol and realize their soulmate was about to compete in the Conclave; that today could be the day that started their life without their soulmate.

She stared at her arm for what seemed like an eternity. She heard the gate rise and the novitiates rise to their feet. Her arm still received no reciprocation. She heard the traditional speech being said outside in the arena, signaling the commencement of the Conclave, and she was ordered to join the line. As she walked in the single-file line, the sun shining ruthlessly on her face, she saw the enormous crowd that had come to see the birth of the new commander. As the orator continued the ceremonial speech, Lexa took one last desperate look at her arm.

 _Don't let me leave this world without one word from the love of my life_ , she begged in her mind. And as if blessed by the gods of fate, she felt a tingling sensation on her arm. Her heart beat with the last bit of excitement she may ever experience as a trinity symbol began to seep into her skin next to her infinity mark. It was a symbol she couldn't associate with a clan in her area, and assumed that her destined lover was in a clan far beyond the borders of Trigeda and the other eleven Clans. This also explained why she never received any lucid dreams when in proximity to her soulmate.

Invigorated by this first communication with her destined lover, Lexa felt herself standing tall and ready. If she were to die today, she would be content, knowing that she had someone out in the world who was made for her, and if she succeeded, then she would spend every last waking hour trying to find the clan who brandished this symbol.

 **Two years later**

Clarke Griffin surveyed her cell, looking at the different pictures she had sketched into the white walls and floors with the few pieces of charcoal the guards had given her. Imprisoned to solitary confinement for the act of treason against the Ark, the only thing she was given to keep herself from going mad were the few art supplies Chancellor Jaha had assigned to her, a special treatment no inmate in the history of the Ark had received. Because her family had been close friends with the Jaha family, she guessed this was the Chancellor's way of administering justice and mercy.

She was not allowed to communicate with other inmates, and she was not allowed to communicate with her guards, with the exception of protocol responses, such as "yes sir, no sir", and the like. She even suspected that she had been given charcoal because of how faint it left marks on the skin, as if they didn't want her communicating with her soulmate either. That was the cruelest implication of her punishment; that her government had went out of the way to make sure she couldn't even have spiritual peace given by soulmate communication. Clarke tried anyway, though. She liked to assume that whoever they were, that they could still see the faint lines of her drawings. She did not want her soul mate to start thinking that she wasn't interested in them anymore, despite her death sentence.

Her unspoken bond with her soul mate was difficult to explain. She felt so connected to this person already, and would communicate multiple times a day with them. Her mother Abby would try to get Clarke to stop at least for an hour or two so she could focus on her medical classes, but nothing held Clarke's attention like the intricate designs she found constantly appearing on her body. Whoever her soul mate was, they obviously were gratified by the attention too, as Clarke often received marks immediately after making her own.

Clarke was also intrigued by this person to the fullest. All their markings were intricate and bizarre tribal looking ones, and her friend Wells had suggested that probably her soulmate was some kind of anthropology nerd. She wondered just where on the Ark her soulmate resided. The station was enormous, full of different countries attached together in different sectors. Perhaps her soulmate was someone from a country that still valued cultural symbols. It didn't matter now though, because within the year Clarke would be floated, as she was sure she had just turned eighteen recently, or it was coming around the corner any second now. Her soulmate would be left alone for the rest of their life.

As she thought on this depressing idea, she felt a sensation dance on her arm. Lifting her limb, she watched another intricate tribal design grace her skin. Smiling at her soulmate's never-changing theme, Clarke reached for another piece of charcoal and began to draw a triskel symbol. She wanted to make her soul mate happy, continuing the theme they had never stopped since the day she received the infinity symbol on her wrist.

Clarke would never forget that memory. She had just turned sixteen only two weeks before the drawing had appeared, and for those fourteen days she couldn't stop inspecting her body for the first marks of her soulmate. She loved the idea of knowing that there was someone who was destined to love her, and any message she would receive would be cherished by her. Her parents laughed at her, finding her eagerness adorable, but continued to encourage her to focus on her medical career.

When the infinity symbol had appeared, Clarke's whole world had stopped. She was in the process of attending an interview to start an internship in the Ark's medical program and the design bore heavily on her wrist. When she sensed it, she was in the middle of answering a question, and glanced down at her wrist. She stumbled over her words, as she stared at her first message ever. The Director of the Medical Program had to take a glace for himself, curious as to what would make this star pupil so distracted. He ended the interview quickly, on account of not wanting to interrupt this significant moment for his young applicant, telling her they would reschedule for tomorrow instead.

Clarke had rushed outside the office and dug inside her bag, searching for a marker. When she found one, she looked at the infinity design with excitement once more, and tried to remember just which Ark station had that as their patch. Too excited to think of something better to draw, Clarke went with the first thing off the top of her head, the trinity symbol shared among many stations of the Ark. In hindsight, Clarke hated that that was the first thing she sent to her soul mate. She was an artist for crying out loud, yet the first thing she sends is a basic trinity. She hoped her soulmate would understand.

Outside her cell, she heard power-locked bolts begin to unlock, and Clarke jumped to her feet. She had already received both meals for the day, and her shower, why would her door be unlocking? Overwhelmed, her mind resorted to the only plausible answer, and it sent her into an instinctual panic- it was time for her death. They had come to execute her by sending her into space, floating her just like her father.

"Prisoner, turn away from the door and face the bedside wall with your hands behind your head!" commanded a guard before the door had fully opened.

Clarke wasn't ready. This couldn't be it. She wasn't ready!

She tried to steady her hand as she held her arm up once more, needing to see- well, talk to- her soulmate once more. Just once more before she died, she had to let her soul mate know…

"Prisoner!" The guard spat, seeing that Clarke had not obeyed his order. "Drop whatever is in your hand and face the wall!" He stepped inside, and began to rush at her.

Hastily, Clarke scribbled on her arm, her breath shaking and her legs trembling. This was it. This was the end. The guard violently grabbed her drawing wrist and gripped it tight, causing her fingers to drop the charcoal. He grabbed her remaining arm and forcefully bent Clarke over to restrain her wriggling. Cold steel handcuffs pinched her skin. The guard jerked her back to a straight posture and pushed her out of the cell, catching a quick glimpse of her forearm, which sloppily read an incomplete: _Goodby_


	2. Chapter 2

Clarke couldn't believe it. What she anticipated to be her execution was actually a second chance. She had been chosen among ninety-nine other inmates to recolonize Earth. By risking her life for the Ark, she could earn all her privileges as a free citizen again. All she had to do was prove that Earth was no radioactive threat and she could have a life again. She stood side by side with the rest of the hundred inmates, feeling the guards place slim metallic bracelets on everyone's wrist.

"These bracelets cannot be removed!" Instructed a guard who walked up and down the line of criminals. "They record your vitals and transmit them to the Ark. This is the key to your freedom. Without the knowledge it transmits, you all have no chance of redemption. Using the Earth Skills and other miscellaneous classes you attended during your freedom in the Ark, you are tasked with building shelter, finding food in the form of plants and animals, drinkable water, and survival of the weather. We will be able to track you via satellite as well in terms of what kind of environment you will experience. The faster you accomplish your mission, the sooner you will have your freedom, as the rest of the Ark will join you in your victory."

Clarke turned her head to look at the other inmates. They all had different expressions playing on their faces, and Clarke knew that not everyone was planning on doing the right thing with this mission. But Clarke was more concerned with the actual probability to survive Earth before thinking about running away from the responsibility of saving the human race.

"You will receive further instruction on your drop ship. Make way down the platform to prepare for launch!"

The line of criminals obeyed, and Clarke followed suit. Curiously, she looked down at the incomplete message she had written to her soul mate over an hour ago and there was no reply yet. Trying not to feel hurt by the silence of her soulmate, Clarke tried to focus on the line in front of her. As they all shifted into the drop-ship, one by one, Clarke heard someone shouting in the distance. Turning around before being led into the threshold of the ship, she saw her mother being held back by guards in the distance.

"Clarke!" She shouted, a broken smile gracing her face. This was the first time they had seen each other in months, and it was another goodbye. "Clarke! I'll be watching you! Your bracelet! I'll be monitoring them! Clarke!"

With that, Clarke was pushed in by a guard, and the sight of her mother and the Ark was closed off to her.

Clarke couldn't remember the launch. In fact, most of the travel was a blur. The turbulence had shaken her spirits and her equilibrium, making her mind spin and her heart send herself into a panic attack, causing her to pass out for the duration of the entrance into Earth's atmosphere. In her loss of consciousness, she began to suffer from a dream, which wasn't any less frightening than this voyage back to earth.

She saw herself standing in the forest, the scenery most likely provided by her recollection of wildlife from the libraries of the Ark. The sky was bright, and the sun shone on her face, feeling a sense of warmth she had never experienced. The pleasure of the sun was cut short as Clarke started to feel the ground beneath her rumble. Anxious, she surveyed the ground, trying to understand these tremors, when instantly hands started to break through the dirt, revealing arms and shoulders disturbingly pushing from the Earth. Clarke stumbled as she attempted to run away, falling to the ground herself. The bodies continued to emerge all around her, revealing haunting faces. The further they continued being birthed from the ground, they attempted to crawl towards Clarke, gripping onto the trees and swimming through the loose gravel. She wanted to scream for help, but her voice was trapped in her throat. She began to feel hands slid up behind her arms and rest on her shoulders. Instead of panicking, she surrendered to the grasp, leaning her head back to rest on the body coming up behind her. Sheepishly, she tried to see who held her in place, noticing the other earthly bodies crawl past her, but could only make out one thing- green eyes.

Shaken awake, Clarke moaned in her fastened seat, hearing the other passengers of the 100 murmur in excitement. Had they landed? The sickening movement of the travel was absent. Her brain was no longer swimming in her skull, and her heart beat at a mellow pace. Taking a deep breath, she did what all the others were still afraid to do. She pressed the button of her seatbelt, and freed herself from her chair. Taking weak steps across the platforms, everyone watched her in silence, as Clarke Griffin made her way to the airlock door and slammed her fist on the release button. The goliath door of the drop ship broke free, and the air from the world rushed into the ship, flooding the 100 with the scent of dirt, pine, smoke, and summer wind. Clarke's lungs felt ethereal as she breathed it in and her eyes squinted upon instinct as true sunlight pieced her sight. In this brief moment of having her body bathe in all that Earth had to offer as a greeting, Clarke felt true freedom. She was experiencing something even the most elite citizens of the Ark never got to relish in: fresh, not recycled air, and light so bright and pleasant that no UV lamp could ever produce. This redemption mission was the greatest privilege of any Arkers' life, and the Ark did not truly understand what they had set free…

 **Sometime later**

Lexa had often dreamt of the woods. The forest was her home, and the expanse of the wild was her rightful domain. But this dream was different. It started off with her watching herself lying in a field, contently stargazing, alone- which was rare, as the Heda always had a guard or two nearby in her waking life. She stared at the sky, smiling at how some stars had faint hues of red or orange, and how a shooting star had appeared, with the brightest and strongest streak across the night sky that Lexa had ever witnessed. Her dreaming must have exaggerated it. As dreams often do, the setting changed and Lexa was now experiencing the dream in first person- and she was flying. Or so it seemed. As she paid more attention to the feeling of the dream, she sensed that she was falling, and that this dream was not from her perspective at all. Her mind began to tell her that she was seeing through someone else's eyes, and that they were falling from the highest point in the sky. The person, this vessel- that she was witnessing this from was screaming erratically, being tossed and flipped in the air as she continued to drop from the sky. From her peripheral vision, she could also see others falling from the sky all around her, all terrified and hopelessly being carried by the wind and gravity. Soon a forest began to become clear below them, and the girl who hosted this vision crossed her arms in front of her face to prepare herself for the impact and came crashing down against the giant trees of the forest; branches and spruce needles snapping and scraping her face, flesh breaking and specs of blood flying out- and soon, the ground.

Lexa jolted awake before the impact, her subconscious terrified of the deathly blow, and found herself at her desk, safe in the Grounder capital of Polis. She must have fallen asleep reading the numerous correspondence reports that flooded in daily. As the Commander, her subconscious was always full of bizarre dreams, but this one was beyond enigmatic. Looking on her arm, she studied the word faintly left by her soulmate the night before: _goodby_.

She hadn't responded as fast as she used to in the past because it simply made her uneasy. During these past two years both Lexa and her soulmate had communicated with art, sending each other sentimental symbols, but never with words. Lexa had often sent the symbols of the various twelve clans, trying to see if her soulmate would respond in a particular way to identify with. She wanted to know where her soulmate hailed from. Yet now, with this word, she feared that her soulmate was not a member of any clan. While the many Grounders clans were familiar with English, it was not the first language for any of them. In fact, Lexa didn't know anyone who chose to write or speak in English by default, it was always Trigedasleng. Seeing this English word on her arm filled her with a sickening feeling that perhaps her soul mate lived among the Mountain Men. They had abducted her people for years, and if the missing persons ever resurfaced, it was as monsters. Lexa wouldn't know what to do with herself- and what her people would do, if they knew that her soul mate was one of their greatest enemies. She wanted to test this theory and write a word back in Trigedasleng, but her heart did not want to accept the fact that this person she was developing an incredible bond to was someone who belonged to a group she wanted to fiercely destroy in battle.

"Heda!"

Lexa spun around in her chair, alarmed by the abrupt invasion of privacy. A lieutenant stood breathlessly by her door, huffing for air. The Commander raised her eyebrow, not bothering to speak to him, but waited.

"Heda," he repeated, placing his hand over his chest, perhaps to calm his lungs, "There has been an explosion south of Ton DC, eyewitness reports claim that something fell from the sky at sunrise. Their rider has only just arrived. They believe it is the Mountain sending missiles."

Lexa contemplated this report quickly, finding it bizarre that the Mountain Men would do any kind of missile testing or any acts of war. They had been content with stealing her people, and she didn't dare send her warriors to storm the fortress.

"Send a rider of our own to clarify and assess the impact location," was all Lexa had said, "We need a verified account, not eyewitness assumptions. In order to know what we're facing we must know the truth."

"Yes, Heda," The Scout quickly bowed his head and left the room.

Lexa turned back to her arm, and frowned at the word yet again. Reaching for a pen, thought of what to send back. At a loss, she drew the symbol of Trigeda, a biohazard. She didn't want to lose contract, and she didn't want to lose her soulmate in general. Feeling a bout of selfishness, Lexa swore she would stay faithful to her soulmate until any negative suspicions were confirmed. If her soulmate was from the Mountain, they would recognize the Trigeda symbol.

She leaned back and watched, waiting for a response.

Nothing.

Maybe her soul mate was angry at her lack of response from last night. Or maybe- Lexa felt like a fool at not noticing the obvious- maybe something had happened to her soulmate. Panicking slightly, she gave in and scribbled the word: _Mountain?_ This would do it. This would confirm everything she was fearing. Perhaps her soulmate was from the mountain, and had said goodbye because they had figured out that she was a Grounder, and that there was no hope for them ever being together.

And then- Lexa held her breath and her heart beat feebly as she read the words bleeding with ink forming next to her message: _Come with me to Mount Weather?_


	3. Chapter 3

The Ark really should have sent someone else. Sending a group of criminals to obey the government on a mission far away from their punishing hands was one of the worst decisions in history. Clarke was no fool, of course. She knew first as to why the Ark would send people to recolonize Earth, and it was because all the life-support systems on the space station were either faulty already or were a ticking time bomb, with only months of functionality left. The Ark had no choice but to send someone to find a new home for the human race before it was too late- but criminals? Sure, if Earth wasn't ready to be inhabited yet due to a radioactive environment, people who would've been executed anyway would've been all that was lost. But now that it was pretty likely they would survive, everyone from the drop ship was stretching their wings to do as they pleased.

Clarke had tried to take the reins before things went out of control, but it was too late. Hours had gone by since their landing and everyone had started to faction off in some way, expressing no desire to even begin their mission. The first thing on their list was to secure shelter in an old bunker named Mount Weather, which was assumed to have nonperishable food supplies and medicine, but no one quite seemed to understand its importance just yet. Clarke felt her frustration begin to bottle up, coming closer to the realization that she hadn't been sent to Earth with criminals, but with idiots, who apparently thought lounging about was going to keep them alive.

It also didn't help that a stowaway was already introducing anarchy to the 100 inmates. Bellamy Blake had smuggled himself on board somehow, claiming that he did so to accompany his sister, Octavia Blake. The Ark had strictly practiced population control, so the talk of siblings wasn't completely foreign because of the general topic of birth control, but no one in the history of the Ark had actually raised a second child to maturity without the government's knowledge like the Blakes did. It was a shame they were caught, and Octavia no doubt went into the history books to forewarn the future generations of the Ark about the consequences of having more than one child.

With his charisma, and stolen guard uniform, he enticed the others to be carefree and disregard their responsibilities to the Ark- which Clarke vehemently reminded them that it was actually a responsibility to humankind. But Clarke's words weren't completely ignored, as she attracted a small band of supporters who agreed that shelter should still be their top priority. Responsibility to the mission or not, they still had to survive. This was enough to even get Bellamy's group of lazy rebels to agree, and Clarke began to realize the key to getting these misfits to stay on track: self-interest. She made a mental note to remind herself on how to manipulate them in the future: make all necessary tasks seem like it's about them, not about the Ark. She informed the camp that she would be departing within the hour, and that if anyone wanted to join up, to come see her before she left.

Studying the map sent in the mission essentials pack, Clarke frowned as she tried to navigate their necessary path to Mount Weather with her pen. It seemed that the Ark had failed with their trajectory of the drop ship and landed them miles away from their destined target. Feeling something grace her arm, Clarke looked away from the map to see if it was perhaps an insect, one of the first she would be able to see outside of a biology class. Instead she was greeted with a drawing of a biohazard symbol. Her breath caught in her throat, relieved that her soulmate was up to their usual behavior. Clarke had always wondered what it was about symbols that intrigued her soul mate so much, and if they had any actual significance.

As these thoughts swam in her mind, Clarke found herself thinking down a particular path that set the hairs on the back of her neck standing. Her last communication with her soulmate was right before she was taken into custody. There was no word from them during her processing, her mission briefing, and the flight to Earth, yet now, after the adjustment period of everyone getting their "Earth legs", communication had resumed. Clarke's mind raced as she began to entertain the thought that perhaps communication was stalled because her soulmate was going through the exact same thing! Clarke couldn't respond because she was not enabled to. If her soulmate still had their freedom, they would've been able to respond any time during this time lapse.

And this biohazard- could it have been their way of expressing what they felt about Earth's environment? The planet was still toxic with levels of radiation, as informed by the briefing report, so how would this symbol not be used in relation to their situation? Sending her heart into an even bigger frenzy, the word " _Mountain?"_ began to bleed onto her arm. Ecstatic, she smiled as she hastily replied " _Come with me to Mount Weather?"_ She must have looked crazy to everyone in the camp who caught a glimpse of her, smiling like a fool at her arm the way she was, anticipating the next response. But everyone had to know, they all had soul mates themselves, and the bond between soul mates was typically respected.

"So how long do you think it's going to take?" asked a cautious voice. Startled from her thoughts, Clarke looked up to see Wells, her long time best friend, who also happened to be the record holder for Clarke's longest grudge.

"Wells!" she shouted, getting to her feet. "What are you doing here?" Wells was one of the most disciplined citizens of the Ark, and being Chancellor Jaha's son, seeing him here was like a sign of the apocalypse.

"I had to come with you," he shrugged, "I couldn't let you go by yourself."

"I can handle myself, Wells." Clarke retorted, "You ruined your life just to tag along with someone who doesn't want anything to do with you."

Wells' face had already fallen, but Clarke knew that on the inside he was at his lowest. As if Clarke would ever forgive the snitch who got her father killed.

"I'm still going with you to Mount Weather," he brought himself to say. Clarke's mind immediately flashed back to the invitation she sent out to her soulmate, who was somewhere among this camp. Her consciousness immediately reminded her that Wells couldn't have been her soulmate, because back when they were 16, they had been dared by other kids in their class to write on their own arms in front of them so they could see if Clarke and Wells were destined for each other. The situation had only happened because they would constantly be teased for spending so much time together. You know how it is, the older you get, the less likely people believe a friendship between a male and female can actually exist. Clarke had to shut them up, so she rolled up her sleeve, hastily rolled up Wells', and drew an Egyptian ankh on her wrist. The classmates huddled around as they waited for it to appear on Wells, but it didn't. Instead, a new bizarre symbol reappeared on Clarke's within seconds, much to the onlookers' dismay.

"No you're not!" Clarke felt herself warm with anger. "You're going to stay here and help them build this base camp. I don't want to go anywhere with you."

"Well damn, I guess this _isn't_ where we sign up for the Mount Weather trip, huh?"

Both Wells and Clarke turned their heads to address the new voice, and gazed upon Octavia Blake, who had Bellamy grumpily behind her.

"You're not going!" he tried to mutter in her ear.

"You can't tell me what to do, Bellamy," she snapped like only siblings could, immaturely pushing him away. "You can't look after me forever."

"Hey, we're coming too!" Two young boys came jogging up behind the Blakes, out of breath, but full of excitement. It was Jasper and Monty, two boys she had seen during the mission briefing, who were paying more attention to each other than the informing guard before launch, obviously thrilled at being reunited as partners in crime. Clarke felt a bout of shallowness, hoping to any living god that one of these two wasn't her soulmate. She could accept Octavia, but not these-

"Me too," chimed in one more voice. The small party silenced as they saw Finn Collins, the notorious "Space Walker", make his way towards them. Clarke could've laughed at the humor of the universe. If Finn was her soulmate, they were already on the wrong foot, as she held him directly responsible for the death of two inmates who died upon landing, because they followed his example of not staying in their seats.

"Well I'm not," Bellamy said gruffly.

"Take Wells with you," Clarke said, nudging him into Bellamy's path. Wells stared in disbelief at Clarke's passive aggression.

"Come on man," Bellamy continued, guiding Wells away, "Someone has to watch the order of the camp." With that, he gave a last disapproving look to Octavia, and the two walked away.

"What order?" Octavia mocked as she watched him disappear in the crowd of the remaining inmates.

Clarke turned to look back at the rest of the camp, determined to make one last call to her soulmate, wherever they were, just in case they weren't standing by her, and shouted, "We're heading out now, if anyone else would like to come, now's your chance."

"No one wants to join you!" cackled a voice in the crowd. The other inmates burst into laughter and mockery.

 _Okay then,_ Clarke thought to herself. Turning to her small band, she looked at the faces in front of her. One of these was her soulmate. Swallowing her anxiety, she nodded.

"Let's get a move on, then…"

 **Concurrently**

Lexa had been pacing her room for the past five minutes. Her soul mate was from the Mountain, and had invited her to the deadly fortress. It was a trap. It had to be. Not even a soul mate bond could stop the Mountain Men from being so malicious that they would lure their soul mate just to murder them. But the words! _With_? _Come with?_ Mountain Men only left their underground city to capture her people. Perhaps her soul mate was one of the abductors, looking to take her to their home.

But the romantic inside Lexa couldn't be tamed, and a small part of her wanted to believe that her soulmate knew they were star-crossed, but still wanted her in their life. There was nothing more tempting than a forbidden romance.

 _I'll just… see who they are,_ Lexa began convincing herself. _I owe it to myself… just to see. I'll hide and watch them wait for me… just to see…_

Instantly, Lexa was blessed with an idea. Hastily she walked towards the doors of her chambers and ripped them open, the excitement of this dangerous and secret mission fueling her energy. She startled the guards who stood watch.

"I wish to go on a hunt, I am restless," Lexa informed.

"Yes, Heda," obeyed one of the guards, his voice deep. "Shall I have the hounds prepared?"

"That won't be necessary, I wish to travel and hunt in the lands of Ton DC."

"That is quite a ride, Heda. The wildlife around Polis is bountiful; there is no need to go so far."

"It is where I want to go," Lexa said, her tone becoming deep herself, warning him of his place. "Prepare the horses and gather me a small party of no more than three riders. I will rendezvous in the village of Ton DC tonight. I will be safe among my people. Do you think they will not host their Commander?"

"No, Heda, forgive me," The guard bowed his head in repentance, waiting for the forgiveness of his Commander.

"Go," was all she said. "I wish to depart as soon as possible. I expect them to be ready when I am finished changing into my hunting gear."

"Yes, Heda." He turned and left briskly, making his way down the hall and leaving the other guard to continue his watch by Lexa's door.

She didn't know how much time she had in this window to see her soul mate outside the fortress of the Mountain, so she had to make haste, and if it was a trap, have the smallest amount of blood on her hands if her riders were captured.

When they set out, Lexa lead the charge fiercely, making excellent time through the dense forests. Her riders exchanged nervous glances at each other as they galloped for miles, wondering what exactly had their Heda bursting with so much deterministic energy. All they could see in front of them was fast pacing streaks of green, brown, and gray, their ears drowned in the sound of galloping hooves, as they dashed across the Commander's expansive territory.

"Heda, the horses must rest," warned one of Lexa's riders, who just happened to be one of her most trusted lieutenants, Indra. Lexa stole a quick glance at her stallion, who was indeed starting to foam at the mouth as he continued to race on. They had been going for at least two hours, and they were still quite some distance away from Mount Weather.

"There's a river nearby," Lexa shared, out of breath, "We shall take the horses there to regenerate, and begin our hunt."

"Yes, Heda," Indra said, grateful to see the desperate charge come to an end. However, she felt suspicious, and the rest of the party did as well. "This hunt," Indra began, "What made you desire to hunt in the grounds of Ton DC, and on the half of their fields that leads to the Mountain?"

She did not waste any time in implying her suspicions. Before answering, Lexa let her horse transition to a trot, hearing it puff exhausted exhales. She felt sorry for the beast. She shouldn't have forgotten about his wellbeing for the sake of her eagerness.

"The closer to the Mountain, the more unique the game," Lexa lied casually. "There's a two-headed buck in these parts somewhere, I wish to mount its head as a trophy in Polis one day." Finding the river she spoke of, she and the others tied their horses up onto nearby trees. She unsheathed the spear holsters from her saddle and slung them across her shoulder. The others followed suit and armed themselves with spears, as well. Determined, she planned to have her riders follow her, subtly taking this hunt closer and closer to the Mountain. "Let's begin."

For a moment, Clarke forgot about the fact that her soul mate was with her on this trip, and got lost in the world. The books she spent hours staring at in the Ark did not compare to the real thing. Her senses had never felt so amplified! The wind blew gently in so many directions in a split second, gracing across the thin layer of sweat developing on her skin as the hike across this undiscovered area took a toll on her fitness. The sound of the gravel and twigs breaking underneath her boots- and the actual feeling of it through the thick textured soles- sent her nerves into overdrive. She felt sensationally sensitive. The sight of a bright blue sky! All she had ever seen in her life was the glorious, yet dark, expanse of the galaxy, but this brightness! There was something about it that aided her happiness. And clouds! What bizarre shapes they created in the sky; her artistic soul never failing to see some sort of shape in them.

She couldn't help but yearn to touch everything she passed, feeling the rough scratching of a tree's bark, the prickling of one leaf, and the smoothness of another. She even saw animals- mutated, though. That two-headed buck really threw her off. She felt hunger stir in her stomach, but paid it no mind, as the promise of finding Mount Weather meant having a meal once they got there. Besides, this hike was starting to feel less like a mission and more like leisure, as she even took a small moment from her responsibilities to take a quick glance at Octavia, who decided it was a good time to take a dip in a river- a _small_ moment. And then there was this over-looming thought that her soulmate was nearby, and Clarke couldn't steady her heart as Finn handed her a swinging rope to travel across the river. She felt a rush of excitement she had never felt before, as she stared into his eyes, searching for confirmation.

The excitement was short lived as the most bizarre thing happened next. Jasper, who had made it across the river first, had been impaled by a spear that came out of nowhere. She wanted to scream, but it just didn't make any sense.

 _No one was left one Earth._

 _It just…_

 _No one._

Grounders had been a boogey man tale told on the Ark about the people who were left to endure the radiation-plagued Earth during the nuclear apocalypse. _But… there's no way they survived._

She had taken off, fueled by her instincts. She could hear her company call out after her, but she couldn't stop running. Her brain pleaded with her to calm down, to stop and stay where she was so she could be found, but her feet just kept telling her to escape. Survive!

Traversing through the woods, she swatted at branches in her way and practically hurdled over bushes and rocks. Her throat dried as she breathed anxiously through her mouth, and soon her side began to cramp. Giving in, she let her feet tumble beneath her, and she tripped onto her hands and knees, feeling bile creep up her throat.

She watched her fingers gripping onto the long strands of grass, giving her anxiety something to focus on in order to calm down. The scent of the dirt and the fresh meadow filled her lungs and did their duty, bringing her back to her senses. She cursed at herself for not being able to keep it together. Her flight or fight response had let her down. As a medical student, she was used to gruesome wounds and blood, but there was just something different about witnessing an attempted murder. Seeing someone receive the injury was different, and the thought that she could be next was even worse.

Focusing on her breathing exercise, she brought herself up to just her knees, kneeling in the grass. She could make her way back now; she just had to listen for-

But she froze, for what she saw in front of her just threw her right back into her stages of disbelief. Three people were in front of her, people she had never seen before, and she could definitely tell that they were not from the Ark. They were all dressed in dark black fabric and leather armor. Two were side by side, brandishing spears, while the last one was frozen as she knelt by a dead deer, its insides torn open with massive chunks of its flesh and muscle resting in wicker baskets. The look on her face was just as confused as Clarke's was. Panicked, Clarke decided she'd rather look at the haunting green eyes of the huntress than the menacing faces of the armed individuals.

She heard someone walk up behind her and her head turned to see who it was, and she bore witness to another stranger, unarmed, but alarming all the same. He was dragging something behind him. Her eyes darted down to see Jasper, unconscious, or probably dead for all Clarke knew, being dragged by his leg. She quickly looked back to the previous three individuals, and saw that the woman who was cleaning out the deer was cautiously rising to her feet, her right hand covered in blood as she revealed a thick hunting knife.

"No, please," Clarke pleaded, her heart ready to explode. She could only wonder what Abby was thinking in the Ark as she observed Clarke's vitals. Clarke couldn't bear the thought that her mother was about to witness her flat-line.

"Heda," grumbled the man dragging Jasper's body. Clarke's hopes of begging for her life began to diminish as she recognized that these people probably didn't speak English. The green-eyed woman nodded, and lowly muttered something in their foreign language, and before Clarke could utter another word, she felt the back of her skull meet a ferocious hit, and the world went black.


	4. Chapter 4

Lexa stretched her legs out as she leaned in her chair, a couple feet from her unconscious captive. She had taken refuge in a lodge in the outskirts of Ton DC with her party, and assigned her members tasks to pass the time as they waited for their captive to awake. They had fastened the girl to a main support beam in the middle of the lodge, her legs stretched out, her head hanging limp on her chest, and her hands behind her back. She hadn't stirred the entire trip or when they secured her to the post. Indra was cleaning the rest of the deer with another rider, while the third, the one who had thrown his spear at this girl's companion, had been assigned to tend to his wounds. He had briefed Lexa on why he had attacked the boy, and that there were many other people present at the site, including the girl.

The atmosphere of the wooden lodge was controlled to seem as inconspicuous as possible to any passersby, as the candle light in each corner of every room flickered dimly, giving off a sleepy feel, and everyone worked as silently as possible.

Guiltily, Lexa looked at her now bare arms, as all communication from her soulmate had finally faded away. She kept thinking about just how close she was to the Mountain when these strangers got in her way. Was her soulmate still waiting, or had she missed her chance? Picking up a quill from the table, Lexa searched her mind on what to start. What would be appropriate under the circumstances that had followed earlier in the day? Sorry? Are you still there? Dejectedly, she scribbled: _Can we try again?_ She felt ashamed in herself; she so desperately wanted to find her soulmate. She felt like she had gotten so close, a privilege not many people actually got to enjoy, and had to miss out on her chance because of her duty to her people.

In the corner of her eye, Lexa saw movement, and turned her head to see that the girl had been watching her.

"You're up," Lexa said, un-phased, as she rolled down her sleeve to cover her arm. "Who are you, and why were you in my territory?"

The girl blinked, frozen on the floor as her shoulders began to move, no doubt trying to loosen her binds.

"Answer me," Lexa repeated, using a bit of her authoritative aura. "What's your name?"

"Where am I?" the girl replied instead, looking around the lodge.

Lexa rolled her eyes and gave in, "You're in my lodge, that's all you need to know. Now, who are you? No harm in telling a name, is there?"

"Where's Jasper? What happened to him?"

"Hunting accident," Lexa smirked smugly, "Now tell me what your name is."

The girl gave a shaky breath before replying, "My name's Clarke, Clarke Griffin."

"My name is Lexa, Commander of the Twelve Clans, and I own the lands you and your friends were _gallivanting_ on."

Clarke raised an eyebrow as she took in this information. Her brain was rapidly trying to accommodate all this new information. There were people on Earth this whole time, and not only that, but they were organized.

"We didn't mean to trespass," Clarke began, hoping the truth would be enough to remove the threat she felt occupying the room. "We didn't know that people still lived on Earth."

Lexa amusedly scoffed. That was the stupidest thing she had heard all day. "You had no idea that people lived on Earth?" she mocked, "Are you not from it?"

"Yes." Clarke replied bluntly.

"What?" Lexa asked, not in the mood for games.

Clarke must have sensed the lack of patience, so she opted to explain, "We landed early this morning, at sunrise. We came from a space station called The Ark."

"… From the sky?"

"Yes."

"How many of you are there?" Lexa asked, deciding to bite this bait. Her mind flashed to the dream she had this morning. Was her subconscious giving her an omen of these people?

"We don't mean any harm," Clarke said instead, "We're just trying to survive. We're new to this; we were just trying to find food and shelter. If we had known this was your land, we would have been more careful."

Indra entered the space from a room to the left, carrying a plate of fried meat.

"So she's awake," the lieutenant observed, placing the plate down in front of Lexa.

"Yes," Lexa replied, watching Clarke take in Indra form. The girl must have been absolutely terrified. "She claims she came from the sky…"

"The missile?" Indra whispered. Lexa nodded slowly, eyes still locked on Clarke.

"Leave us," Lexa commanded, "I have some questions to ask her. You and the others may eat in the other room."

"Yes, Commander," Indra sent a snarl to Clarke, turned around and exited. When the door to Indra's room shut, Clarke and Lexa made eye contact once more.

"Tell me, Sky Girl," Lexa started, picking up some utensils to start cutting her meal. "How many of you are there?"

Clarke remained silent.

"Did you know, Clarke, that withholding information like that can only make me feel like you and your people are dangerous." Lexa looked at a piece of the venison on her fork, finding it covered with salt, pepper and a number of spices. "All I'm trying to do is make sure that _my_ people are safe. We could really avoid a lot of problems in the future if you would just tell me everything I need to know."

Clarke watched as Lexa took a bite of the tender meat, and felt her stomach growl.

Lexa's lips curled into a smile as a new idea came into her head. "You must be hungry," she said, "It's been at least three hours since you first ran into us in the woods. Tell you what, I'll give you a warm meal if you tell me all about your camp?"

Clarke groaned internally, beginning to acknowledge the sense of starvation making itself known in her stomach. She didn't want to sell her people's safety out for food, but God was it tempting. The Ark rarely had real meat, as the majority of the food was processed or synthetically grown. She had only experienced a real platter on special occasions when the Jaha's had procured a turkey, but red meat… her instincts begged for it.

"I don't know how many there are," Clarke bluffed.

"Is that because there are so many or so little?" Lexa inquired, serving herself another bite.

Clarke looked away, refusing to answer.

"Oh, Clarke," Lexa sighed, leaning forward in her chair. "What is the harm? We know nothing about each other, and we're both doing the same thing: just trying to learn if the other is a threat. I'm sure if your people had captured one of mine, they'd be interrogating them as well; only I'm only taunting you with something to eat, not actually torturing you."

"My people wouldn't torture anyone," Clarke snapped, lying to herself.

"Sure," Lexa teased, "I don't think you understand how lucky you are, Clarke. Here you are, being held captive by a leader and you haven't faced any form of physical punishment whatsoever. I very well could finish my meal after cutting _you_ open for answers. But I'm actually giving you patience. Don't take advantage, Clarke, I will revoke this privilege."

"What privilege?" Clarke found herself glaring, hating herself immediately.

"You're my guest," Lexa informed, with a haunting air of hospitality. "If your story is true, then technically your people have not done anything wrong, they just unknowingly landed in my territory. You haven't taken my lumber, hunted my animals- well as far as I'm aware, and you haven't harmed any of my people. You're just simply floating in the woods. Since I have no incident to act on, besides trespassing, what more can I do but to make sure you won't interfere with my people?"

"We're not," Clarke groaned, still looking away from Lexa.

"You keep saying that, yet you can't bring yourself to answer my other question about your populace. That doesn't make me feel convinced."

"But how am I to know that telling you my numbers isn't just going to encourage you to attack mine?" Clarke cried, her face consumed with frustration.

Lexa almost felt sorry for the girl, but Clarke had to understand that Lexa was just doing her job. "Clarke," she said as soothingly as possible, "My people are not savages. If I tell them not to attack you, they won't, you have my word. However, I don't know about your people. I just need to know who exactly you are so if the time comes, I know what I'm up against."

Clarke's stomach rumbled again.

"This meeting can result in peace, it just depends on your cooperation, Clarke," Lexa said, cutting another piece of food. "Here, you can have a bite, no strings attached, just to silence that stomach of yours." Lexa stood up from her chair and walked over to Clarke. Crouching down, she held the fork in front of Clarke's lips. Clarke looked at Lexa, humiliated at having to be spoon-fed, but Lexa urged her on, reminding her that she wasn't going to untie her. Clarke opened her mouth slightly and leaned forward to capture the fork with her lips. She pulled the meat from the fork with her teeth, and immediately began to taste its superb flavor the instant it touched her tongue. She couldn't help the satisfied moan that rose in her throat as she chewed the tender piece. Lexa smiled at Clarke's pleasure and returned to her seat.

"We could help each other out, Clarke, there doesn't have to be fear," Lexa tried, continuing the gentle interrogation.

"I don't want to say anything that can betray my people," Clarke confessed, after she swallowed the bite. "We are harmless, I can guarantee it. I'm just afraid that's all you need to wipe us out."

"I promise we won't, Clarke, not unless you give us a reason to."

"Are your people armed?"

"Yes." A lie.

"Are you looking to expand?"

"We were actually looking to relocate," Clarke began, "We were on our way to Mount Weather when I ran into you. We were told it had shelter and provisions. We were just going to move there, that was our only plan."

Lexa stiffened in her chair. "You'll find that the Mountain is already inhabited, unfortunately, you cannot take your people there."

"By who?" Clarke asked, genuinely intrigued.

"The Mountain Men. They have lived there as long ago as the origin of my people."

Clarke felt herself cower against her post. Lexa had warmed up for a brief moment, and sharing her food had actually worked in gaining a bit of Clarke's trust, but now her fear had returned, as she could feel anger radiating off the Commander at the mention of wanting to live in Mount Weather.

"I uh… I saw you looking at your arm earlier," Clarke started, hoping to defuse the tension by changing the subject. "Communicating with your soul mate?"

Lexa eyed Clarke suspiciously. "Did you see what I wrote?"

"No," Clarke shook her head vigorously. "I just saw that you looked troubled about it. I haven't found mine either."

"Sometimes I just want to ask for a name," Lexa confessed, letting herself wind down. "But I'm sure even your people know that it's bad luck."

Clarke nodded understandingly. "Yes, they would teach us as children that if you communicate with names before you meet them, you're doomed to not stay together. That you'll be separated from them forever, or that one of you will die tragically," Clarke chuckled at this, " But if you ask me, the way the world is, and probably always has been, you can lose your soulmate no matter what. Someone could kill them, they could be imprisoned- especially where I come from where even the smallest crime gets you a death sentence, the government is more likely to doom your soul bond, not the universe."

"You make a solid point, Clarke," Lexa smiled, "Your people sound unforgiving."

"They have their reasons," Clarke frowned, thinking back about the ways of the Council. "Even though I mock the odds, I still find myself respecting the superstition, but who knows if it's really true."

"Clarke," Lexa sighed, "One of my men is tending to the wounds of your friend. You will be able to take him back to your camp, but only if you cooperate." Clarke looked down at the ground. Having Jasper being thrown into the mix of interrogation, she felt more responsible to him at the moment and thought that she had to save him first. "Do you have a leader at your camp?"

"No," Clarke mumbled, "Not yet."

"So you're running about lawlessly?"

"No, we all had the mission to find Mount Weather. After we established our shelter, we were probably going to elect a leader."

"Any elders or children?"

"Mostly youths, as much as I could see."

"Since you should give up on Mount Weather, your people are most likely going to be roaming around for food and water, correct?"

"Most likely…"

Lexa had had enough. This was probably going to go nowhere. It seemed as if the group Clarke had traveled with was in fact a cluster of harmless vagabonds and that there was no need to have this go any further. In her native language, she called out for her riders, who entered the main room instantly.

"Bring the boy with his cot, we are letting them go back to their people," Lexa ordered. Her riders bowed and obeyed, and Clarke felt herself sit up straight in anticipation. "I'll have to cover you for the journey so that you don't know where we are."

"Okay," Clarke said eagerly.

Lexa picked up a strip of fabric and kneeled to begin wrapping it around Clarke's eyes in multiple layers, then finally tightening it at the back of her head. Shifting closer, she moved to untie Clarke's binds- when she froze.

Part of her sleeves had been rolled up to make room for the binds, but coming out from underneath the cuff of her jacket read the words: _ry again?_ Lexa's heart jumped into her throat, and she swore everyone in the world could hear the pulse in her jugular vein. She wanted to roll up the sleeve further. She pushed the fabric subtly, acting like it needed to be done to get cleaner access to the binds, and revealed: _Can we try again?_

Lexa froze and wanted to throw herself off a cliff. She had just been interrogating her soul mate. She ripped the binds off with inhuman strength, causing Clarke to gasp in discomfort, as it most likely pulled up her wrists with it.

"Sorry," Lexa mumbled the apology. What should she say? _Tell her, tell her!_ Her mind screamed at her to forget being Commander, forget everything, to introduce herself to her soulmate and beg for all the forms of repentance that she could offer. What stopped her was the sight of Clarke.

"Are we ready to go?" the girl asked, her voice seeming firm, but Lexa could see the girl's hands shaking with fear. She didn't want to be here, and finding out about her soulmate now was probably not the best idea. Lexa's heart mourned as she fought to make peace with the concept of having to let Clarke go.

"Yes," Lexa replied, never speaking so softly in her life before. "Hold on to me."

On instinct and common sense, Clarke blindly reached out for Lexa beside her and hooked onto the Commander's arm for guidance. Lexa couldn't stop herself from resting her free hand over Clarke's as she slowly escorted her out of the lodge.

"You're going to share a horse with me, okay? We obviously were not expecting guests when we set out on the hunt this morning," Lexa continued, ever so gently. Clarke nodded still gripping onto the Commander's arm. "Your friend will be gently pulled with his cot as we trot back to where we found you. Will you be able to find your way home from there?"

"Yes," Clarke replied. Really, she had no other choice, and she didn't want these Grounders to come any closer to her camp than they needed to. Lexa helped Clarke feel for the stirrups and saddle, clumsily mounting the horse. Following immediately after, Lexa adjusted herself in the saddle, now tight with the presence of both her body and Clarke's, and vainly tried to give her soulmate some space. Clarke didn't express a word about discomfort whatsoever, so Lexa wrapped her hands around Clarke's waist and held the reins loosely in her hands, Clarke holding onto the horn of the saddle herself.

The entire party trotted peacefully, trying not to go too fast as to disturb or further injure the feverish and unconscious Jasper, fastened in his cot. Lexa couldn't shake the feeling of shame as Clarke breathed anxiously in front of her, knowing that she had done this to her soulmate. She wanted to comfort her, but knew it was not the time nor place, especially when her riders so close by. Since she knew she couldn't declare her identity to the Sky girl just yet, she wanted to start on a new leaf somehow, and have Clarke see her in a better light.

Soon, they were almost at the edge of the river where Jasper was attacked, and Lexa took advantage of this last moment. She leaned closer to Clarke and whispered one more time, "How many of you are there?"

Clarke shivered.

"A hundred," Clarke replied, finally giving in.

Lexa nodded as she contemplated the number.

"This is the best I can do for you now," Lexa began, "If your people can stick to a five mile radius around your camp, which give should give you access to a water source and fruit-bearing plants, I can have my people recognize yours as a trading post. Give me three days to instruct my people, and as long as yours stay peaceful and respect the boundaries, we might even help yours build shelter."

She knew how it would sound to her people. What kind of Commander would give a strange group of people aid in growing their camp? While these Sky people sounded harmless based on Clarke's account, who knew what they would be capable of once they got used to the environment.

"Thank you," Clarke replied gratuitously. "You're very generous." Lexa grinned, immediately taken by Clarke's approval of the idea.

The horses came to a stop and Clarke felt Lexa's arms leave her waist and dismount, and waited for Lexa to help her down. She felt the Commander's hand slip under hers, delicately as if Clarke would break, and slipped from the saddle.

"Do not take your blindfold off until you can no longer hear our horses," Lexa instructed. Indra held Clarke's hands behind her back, and Clarke expected to be tied up once more, but felt the handles of Jasper's cot rest in her grasp instead.

"Goodbye, Clarke," Lexa said, already yearning, and placed a satchel over Clarke's shoulder, much to the girl's surprise. "Provisions for your journey," Lexa informed, almost too caringly. Clearing her voice to embody her Commander's persona, she declared, "Since you have no leader, meet me here in three days, at noon, to discuss diplomacy."

"Okay," Clarke replied, her voice starting to shake again.

Turning to face her riders, who nodded in grievance, she mounted her horse. She took one last look at Clarke then galloped away, and the remaining Grounders followed.

When the sound of hooves finally disappeared, Clarke felt herself being to hyperventilate. She reached for the blindfold with one hand, still holding up Jasper with the other, and yanked it down, freeing tears from her eyes. Taking one last deep breath, she reached back for both handles of the cot, and began her journey back to the drop ship. 


	5. Chapter 5

Clarke couldn't remember the entire walk back to the camp. All she could think of was Lexa dropping her off at the riverbank and her offer of peace and growth. Before she knew it she was walking in the midst of the 100 camp, the by-standing delinquents parting like the Red Sea as she dragged the unconscious Jasper behind her. She could hear them all whispering, dumbstruck at her return. No doubt they had left her and Jasper for dead, and now they were watching the dead return.

"Move! Get out of the way!" commanded a voice from deep within the crowd. Bellamy made his way forward to Clarke, with his right-hand men, Murphy, Miller, and Atom by his side. "We thought you were dead," Bellamy confirmed her suspicions as he stood in front of her. "What happened to you? Where did you go?"

"I panicked," Clarke confessed with shame, "I got scared when Jasper was hit and ran from the group. While I was running away I ran into some Grounders…"

The crowd murmured anxiously, and even Bellamy looked around uneasily.

"Clarke!" shouted other voices in the crowd. Soon Finn and Monty came forth, Monty running straight to kneel by Jasper's cot, while Finn stood awkwardly close to Clarke, as if he was fighting to give her a hug.

"Are you alright?" He whispered, putting his hand on her shoulder comfortingly instead.

"Yes, I am, now," Clarke responded, genuinely feeling safer now in the presence of familiar faces. Earlier in the day she had contemplated if Finn was her soul mate, simply based on a joyful sense of attraction towards him during their adventure. She was curious to ask him about this, but knew now wasn't the time and that simply asking if one was their soulmate could be disastrously embarrassing if wrong. She would have to be content with getting to know him more first before asking the big question.

"Grounders don't exist," stated Bellamy, snapping Clarke out of her thoughts.

"They do," Clarke replied. "They had captured me and their leader asked me questions."

"What did you tell them about us?" Bellamy asked, his chest feeling heavy with tension.

"Just that we were unaware of Earth being uninhabited; that we didn't know we were trespassing," Clarke started, feeling that admitting she told Lexa of their numbers would be seen as traitorous to the 100. "Their leader, Lexa, told me that she would hold a deliberation about peace with her people as long as we stay within five miles of our camp for just three days."

The crowd began to murmur even more when she said this.

"Three days to deliberate peace, huh?" Bellamy questioned with a huff, standing back to address the crowd, "Or three days to mass an army against us to wipe us out?"

Numerous members of the crowd began to express their agreement, making Clarke uneasy.

"I told her that she had nothing to fear from us, that we're peaceful and just want shelter," she tried to reason.

"They should fear us!" Bellamy raised, "Clarke, you can't be so trusting of these people already. We know absolutely nothing about their ways and what they are capable of, but if they were willing to spear Jasper just for crossing a river, there's no way they're going to let a hundred of us prosper, let alone the rest of the Ark if they ever come down. This Lexa probably just let you go to send this message so we would all let our guard down so they could slaughter us in our sleep!" The crowd grew in agreement.

"I don't believe that," Clarke said, finding herself defending Lexa's word, "She had her people heal Jasper! Do you really think they would go through the trouble of correcting their mistake like that if they just want to kill us? 'Oh yes, let's heal him so that we can kill him again,'- sure, Bellamy." She then turned to the crowd, "She also told me that Mount Weather is already inhabited by a group of people, and that these resources the Ark promised us are probably long gone. If we respect her boundaries, since we are on _her_ land, she will have her people help us set up shelter and we will be respected as a trading post in return. She's _helping_ us. Why can't you all see that?"

"Bullshit," Bellamy spat, "she's keeping us disarmed and underfed. It's a basic military tactic. Did you not pay attention in history, Clarke? One of the easiest ways to kill of a population is to cut off all life-necessary supplies! She won't let us leave more than five miles- that gives us a limited amount of food, and who knows if there's a large water supply to quench all a hundred of us. She's making sure we don't have anything, and that we also can't find anything. She wants us to be sitting ducks!"

"It's just for three days, Bellamy, are you kidding me right now?" Clarke growled, feeling her anger elevate. "All we have to do is respect her conditions. It's probably for our own safety too. If we travel too far from the camp before all her people are briefed about us it could be dangerous for us. I really do believe she's giving us a chance. I know she believed me when I said we just wanted to live."

"Whatever, Clarke," Bellamy said, looking down at her, "We'll _honor_ her request, but I'm not gonna sit here and do nothing while we wait." With that, he turned back to the circling crowd. "All those who are not already working on foraging and water gathering, create any kind of weapon you can salvage or rig. If these Grounders don't come for peace, at least we'll have some kind of fighting chance."

Clarke returned his sneer and he and the crowd dispersed.

"Clarke," Monty said, "Let me take Jasper to my tent."

"That's fine," Clarke said blandly, still thinking about Bellamy's arrogance.

"Clarke, I-" Finn started, but was interrupted by Clarke putting her hand up.

"I'm sorry," Clarke began, "But I just need some time to myself right now. It was a long journey back and an emotional day I just need some rest and privacy."

Nodding, Finn took a step back, "Of course," he said. "I'll make sure no one disturbs you."

Clarke thanked him and made her walk to the drop ship, trying to find a corner or level that was empty, and when she found a spot suitable for her privacy, she sat down in a chair and just gazed into nothing, letting her mind finally unravel. She couldn't stop thinking of Lexa, and how her piercing green eyes had succeeding in striking terror in her when she had first seen her in the forest, but how after they had spoken in private her eyes became more soft and inviting. She was hoping that her faith in Lexa was not misplaced, and that Bellamy would feel like a fool when in three days Lexa would arrive at the river with diplomats and aid. She felt like no better offer towards their survival could be made, and she really did not want to have it all be ruined by Bellamy's paranoia.

Remembering that Lexa had given her a satchel, Clarke looked down to the bag slung across her chest and began to rummage through its contents. There was dried jerky, nuts, and dried fruits. They say the quickest way to someone's heart is through their stomach, and Clarke did indeed feel her heart soften as she sampled all the food options inside. She would've shared these with the other hundred, but there wasn't enough for everyone… and they were being too stupid at the moment to deserve it.

As she hungrily picked apart the contents of the satchel, she caught a glimpse of her arm, and saw words. _When did these arrive?_ She asked herself. Startled, she pulled up her jacket sleeve and read the words: _Can we try again?_

Her heart soared and ached all at once. She stood up from her seat and searched the drop ship level for any writing device, and finally found a pen. Whoever it was, whether it was Finn or another delinquent, she didn't care as she found herself writing: _I would try over and over again for you_.

 **The next day, in Polis**

Lexa slumped in her throne, listening to the ambassadors of the other clans debate the issue of the Skai people amongst each other. It really seemed to be 50/50 right now in terms of agreement to her plans for peace. Some said that this handful of a hundred wouldn't be the last, and that who knows how many Skai people actually existed, since the Commander had _failed_ to ask this Clarke Griffin if more were to come. Others however agreed with the Commander that a first attempt for peace wouldn't be any harm, as first impressions were always important. A healthy and fruitful alliance could come from these Skai people, and a trading post was their first step into perhaps gaining more technology that could help them be on the same military level as the Mountain. If the Skai people were going to throw this chance into the wind, then so be it. Better to try for peace first and destroy them at the first sign of rebellion than to wait for the Sky people to grow into disobedience later.

Having enough of the squabble, Lexa lifted her hand and silenced the room.

"These Skai people are novices, based on the Clarke's account. I urge you to see the importance in building an alliance with them while they are still unable to defend themselves. We can make them dependent on us." She shared, hoping this would do to get them all to agree.

"That is a clever idea, Heda," said one ambassador, the eldest in the room. "However, what is to stop them from having gratefulness corrupt into them taking advantage of us? We may come down there to help them grow into the kind of society they need to be in order to fight us."

"I'm sure we'll destroy them before they ever get to that stage," Lexa sighed. "If we take care of these Skai people, I'm sure some of them will feel a sense of loyalty, and would inform us on any suspicious activity."

The ambassadors began to all nod confidently.

"There is nothing wrong with trying to recruit these Skai people for our use," Lexa continued. "There is nothing wrong with trying this first. If they deny our help then your warlords may have the battle they're craving, but for now, we try to reap benefits from this situation."

"Yes, Heda," They all chanted in unison.

"This meeting is dismissed. I command you all to send riders to all your camps near the Skaikru's grounds. No one is to cross their five-mile safe zone. Let us show them that we are sincere about this attempt for peace."

The Ambassadors soon exited the room and left Lexa alone. Relishing in the privacy, Lexa looked down at her arm and studied Clarke's words from last night once more: _I would try over and over again for you_. Lexa's heart soared as high as Icarus at Clarke's faithfulness. Now that she had a face, and a body, and a soul to associate with her soulmate, the words were even more exhilarating. It fueled her with a barbaric desire to steal Clarke away from her Skaikru camp and keep her for herself. Chuckling at her own selfish and ridiculous desires, she wondered just exactly how Clarke would take that. It would ruin the Grounder reputation for not being savages, that's for sure.

She wanted to respond to Clarke as quickly as she always had in the past. Ever since the Conclave, she felt so pleasurably obliged to responding to her soulmate instantly, but now she felt that she had nothing left to offer Clarke in the form of written words or symbols. She wanted to approach her and show Clarke her arm. She was done drawing, she wanted to speak. But she knew Clarke valued the communication as well, she couldn't hurt her destined love like that. But what could she say that would make Clarke's heart as thrilled as hers was right now?

Bashfully, Lexa went for one of the most classic lines in the history of wooing: _you're beautiful_. No doubt this was sending Clarke up the walls.

Almost instantly, Lexa's arm began to tingle. There was only so much room left on the spans of her arm, but that didn't stop Clarke from writing back, small and hurried: _You've seen me? Please, don't torture me, let me see you._

Lexa swallowed hard, the conversation not going where she wanted it to go, but who knows what it was she really expected out of it. Of course Clarke would want to see her if Lexa just acknowledged that she saw Clarke already herself.

 _Soon_ , Lexa wrote solemnly. She had two more days left before she got to see Clarke again. Two more days and she better have the courage to give Clarke what she desired to know.

 **The third day…**

Clarke being nervous was an understatement. Meeting the Grounders wasn't her problem. Her problem was that Bellamy had broken Lexa's five-mile radius rule. He had snuck out with his band of misfits and found a bunker with automatic firearms. She wasn't sure if the Grounders had noticed his escapades, and if everything had been ruined, and if it wasn't ruined, if it probably would be in a bit if one of his goons got trigger happy. Not even communication with her soulmate could calm her. She had tried to speak with them again, but they did not respond to her anymore, and she had no idea why. Well, she kind of did. Last time they spoke, her soulmate had called her beautiful, and as much as that flattered her, she got impatient and kind of demanded that they meet. She couldn't take it anymore. She was haunted by the thought that they were so close to each other, and that her soulmate already knew who she was and hadn't introduced themselves. Instead of words, she resorted back to symbols, and still received no answer. This morning she had sent a biohazard symbol again, just like the first day, but still received nothing. She was tentative with Finn, whom she had started to suspect since they first landed, but couldn't bring herself to ask, as every time she wanted to, her voice would be stolen.

She knew the 100 were watching in the tree lines, eager to see the urban legend they were taught about as children, while Clarke stood the furthest up by the riverbank, and Bellamy and his "mercenaries" stood scattered about Clarke, but in plain view. She could see Octavia and Wells waiting with the others in the trees.

The far off crowd began to make too much noise, and Clarke turned around to see Lexa and three of her riders appear. The horses were majestically donned in saddle-pieces; no doubt this was a sight to see. Clarke herself didn't get to really see the horses either when Lexa escorted her a few days ago. She felt herself mount the beast, but her imagination did not play up to the real thing. Clarke took a couple more steps forward, to signify that she was still eager to make her part in these negotiations as well.

Lexa smiled as she saw Clarke make her way. She was even more beautiful than last time, all fear gone (well, most of it) from her face, only to be replaced by confidence. Lexa had never felt so lucky. The Universe really outdid itself when it created Clarke, and even finding Lexa worthy enough to be her destiny. Her pleasure was short-lived though, as a boy came running up to Clarke from the woods. Clarke turned to him and muttered something, the two of them reaching to hold each other's hands for a brief second. Lexa's smile dropped and her heart surged with jealousy. It took everything within her to not foster thoughts of killing this boy. Clarke hurriedly sent him off, turning back to Lexa with a blush gracing her face.

 _She's mine_ , Lexa thought to herself, struggling with a desire to be possessive.

"Thank you for meeting with us today," Clarke said, rehearsed, no doubt.

Lexa dismounted from her horse to be respectfully level with Clarke. "The same to you. As far as I'm concerned, your people have obeyed my conditions and have not left your camp…" Lexa began, and Clarke could feel Bellamy smirking, feeling pleased with his sleuthing. "If your people are ready, we can begin negotiations."

"Of course," Clarke nodded, "Please go first…"

Lexa took a moment to be stunned by Clarke's exquisiteness. From her soft blonde hair, to her ocean deep blue eyes, and even to the beauty mark above her lip.

"My people are here, ready to raise homes for you. They are waiting a few yards beyond my riders. We have brought enough lumber to build five longhouses for you; assign functions to these buildings as you wish. We have also brought salt, dried meat, and fruit for you to store. Enough to feed your people for five days…"

Clarke could feel her jaw dropping. She could feel Bellamy's prideful paranoia shrivel.

"We have even brought tools and seeds to help your people begin farms of their own. These essentials are our gift to you, to christen this new alliance. However, it is up to your people to help each other thrive. We will not be constantly giving handouts. We do this initial gifting in good faith, to show you what an alliance with us has to offer."

"Lexa," Clarke said, breathlessly grateful, "You are too kind. I don't even know how we can repay you…"

"You and your Sky People can offer the skills that allowed your kind to live among the stars. Medicine, technology. My people wish to honor our old ways, as usual, so we do not ask for this knowledge to integrate it with our culture, but to understand it- you can bring us knowledge that we can use to destroy the Mountain," Lexa continued. "We shall also mutually support each other through economics, as we expect this Skaikru trading post to generate revenue. You shall be open to all the twelve clans and offer them services. We expect you to work; to make sure your post is always full of game, pelts, and any other salvage that may be useful to Trigeda. Do this, and you will be protected by my warriors, and left to thrive as a colony."

This would go down in Trigeda history: the day the Commander built a community without the fear of consequences. But Lexa was the only Commander faced with this dilemma of people falling from the sky; she couldn't be compared against the others. She knew all the leaders of every clan were watching her, even as they were not present. She was giving these Skaikru more than any would have ever done themselves… and this was actually unknowingly done all because of a girl.

"We accept," Clarke blurted, before consulting anyone else. Sure the 100 had known that a meeting was going to happen between them and the Grounders, that's why they were all watching from a safe distance, but she knew that they put all authoritative decisions to Bellamy, who had promised them that they would not be slaves to the Grounders- and working for the Grounders in exchange for peace probably sounded like slavery to them. "As long-" Clarke needed to add something to please her crowd before it was too late, "As long as we are left to govern ourselves. We recognize this land as yours, but we need to rule ourselves with our own leaders to answer to."

"As long as you respect the Trade Agreement and do not engage in any standard act of war we will have no issues, Clarke," Lexa said, making her voice more gentle than diplomatic, "These are still my lands. I understand your people wish to grow, especially by forming your own sense of government, but I cannot allow you to just freely take any more of my land. If your people wish to grow outside of the five mile radius, you must petition. We'll do things as civilly as possible. I'm _letting_ you live on my land, not letting you _take_ my land."

"I understand," Clarke nodded. That should be fair enough, for now. "You're so generous, I speak for all of my people when I say we are so grateful. Not only for your hospitality, but for your mercy. Thank you for sparing us and having faith."

"Thank your people for obeying," was all Lexa said. She enjoyed that Clarke was beyond thrilled by her actions, but she still couldn't completely enjoy it. That boy who had touched her like a lover was still on her mind. She felt immature, but didn't care. Clarke was hers, not his, the universe said so. Reaching her hand out to finalize the agreement, Clarke more than eagerly locked hands. Lexa was expecting them to feel soft, but they were rough and dry, the product of the environment plus the Skaikru's unexperienced behavior, no doubt. As they parted hands from the shake, Lexa turned her head to nod to one of her riders. The rider nodded in obedience and reached for a horn, and its sound filled the sky with a deep droning hum.

More than pleased with herself, Clarke let a smile possess her lips. She had done it, and her people would no longer doubt her- she brought them peace- and a future. Content, Clarke let her eyes drop unintendedly taking in Lexa's figure, admiring what must have been a ceremonial tunic- when she saw it. Her smile died and her eyes widened. Quickly, she instinctively snatched up Lexa's other arm. A biohazard symbol was on it.

"Do not touch the Commander," warned one of the riders in a gruff voice, leaning his spear down in a warning matter.

Lexa cursed at herself internally. She had set out from Polis today making sure she was covered up, but had forgotten that in the heat of the ride she had rolled up her sleeves to relieve some of the heat.

"It is okay, Gustus," Lexa waived. Turning back to the awestruck Clarke, and begged in a whisper, "Later… let my people work with yours. We can talk in private… just not now… please wait."

Clarke felt like she was dreaming. This had to be a dream. Her head was spinning and her heart was pumping erratically.

"But Lexa," she said, feeling as if she would faint, "You're my… you're…"

And she did. 


	6. Chapter 6

Lexa had caught Clarke the second her body went limp, saving her from crashing into the ground. Lexa was startled as three young men came rushing to her aid and the instinct to be protective of her soulmate kicked in, holding Clarke's slumped body against her own.

"What did you do to her?" Bellamy asked, aiming down the sight of his rifle. Instantly the three guards by Lexa pointed their spears at him. His Adams-apple moved roughly as he swallowed in anxiousness.

"She was overwhelmed," Lexa said, fighting to sound more honest than defensive. "This day must have been building up stress for her, I'm sure she'll come around any minute now."

"Hand her over," gently urged one of the three men. Lexa realized that she was still gripping Clarke to her chest protectively.

"Hand Clarke over to Wells, now," Bellamy warned, lowering his weapon just a bit.

"Heda," grumbled Gustus, waiting for her command.

Hesitantly, Lexa handed Clarke's unconscious self to Wells, who shifted in order to carry her properly, with one arm tucked under her shoulders and the other under knees. "I did nothing to her," Lexa repeated.

"I'm not sure I can entirely believe that," Bellamy continued, Atom, Miller and Murphy closing in behind him.

Lexa had had enough. She wanted this to go through for Clarke, and these stupid pretend-alpha males were getting in the way.

"Do you really think I would come all this way to injure just _one_ of your people? What purpose would it do to hurt someone in front of their entire community?" Lexa said defiantly. "If I wanted to strike fear in the hearts of your people I would have just charged through you all by now with just a fraction of my calvary."

The gathering around the riverbank began to fill with tension, and each side wondered who would strike first, when the last of the three Skaikru men had stepped up.

"This isn't what Clarke had worked for," he said, stepping in between Lexa and Bellamy. "If she was overwhelmed, then that's that. She did not work hard to secure this alliance, and I'm sure Commander Lexa did not go through the trouble of dragging a team of workers to help us, for things to not follow through. If Clarke is indeed just under a faint spell, when she awakes and sees that we are at odds, she won't be happy."

"Who cares what Clarke wants, Finn," Bellamy snapped. "She did not fully consult with us regarding all the conditions we were to offer. She sold us out. Now all of us have to give our labor to these people."

"What do you think the Ark will do when they come down? Let us frolic about? They'll put us to work too, at least the Grounders are offering us protection and prosperity." Finn retorted.

As much as Lexa had hated the thought of this boy catching Clarke's attention, she had to admit that at least he was rational. She could admire his attempts to keep Clarke's goal intact.

"Please, Commander," he addressed to Lexa cautiously, "When you're ready, we would all be more than happy to help you and your people start building."

 **Later**

The sense of accomplishment granted by hard work was apparently all everyone needed, as tensions decreased as more work was done. Sure it started off rough, as some of the Arkers had insisted that the building should not commence until Clarke was able to wake up and testify that she had just fainted and wasn't harmed by the Grounders, while others greedily urged the building, only thinking about the luxury of having a roof over their heads. However, the groups seemed to tolerate each other, as seeing the framing of longhouses go up made the Arkers happy, easing the Grounder carpenters and builders who had felt the tension of discrimination brewing.

Lexa however had done what was praised of leaders, disarming Bellamy's propaganda that the Grounders did not truly care about them, by aiding in the building. She helped lug major support beams to the foundations of the longhouses and hammer planks into place. It had been thoroughly agreed upon that the longhouses would function as sleeping halls for the hundred, where twenty persons were to be housed in each of the five buildings, while the drop ship would function as the actual main trading post facility. Food and supplied would be stored there as well until the Skai people built additional buildings on their own, after being armed with this one the job experience of construction. The 100 were thrilled as the camp began to look more and more like the small communities they had seen in their text books, and began to almost feel like they were a part of something. The Skai people kept going on about how it reminded them of some kind of holiday called Unity Day.

Clarke on the other hand, must have been truly exhausted, as she had slept for two hours after her faint. When she woke up, she found herself in the drop ship lying on a makeshift bed. Embarrassed at the remembrance of the her last memories, Clarke slumped out of bed, eager to make her way out to see the fruits of her diplomatic labor. She had heard a rhythmic pummeling, and was curious to see its origin. As she pulled apart the parachute curtain of the drop ship and stayed at the threshold, her eyes were greeted to the sight of the entire camp at work, hammering together planks and beams. And then her mind snapped back to the reason of her fainting. She had been so overwhelmed to finally find her soulmate, combined with the fact of it being the one person she least expected, had sent her brain into overdrive, inciting a panic attack.

Lexa had to be somewhere among this labor, and she had some deep questions to discuss with her. As if on cue, Clarke saw the Commander working hard, integrated with Grounders and Arkers. She had switched out her ceremonial tunic for a more industrial-purposed one, and her lean and fitted body was complimented by it. Her arms, face, and exposed collarbones shone with sweat, while her expression seemed pleased at the activity. The longer she watched Lexa, the more energy she swore she sent out into the world, because soon Lexa looked up from her work, sensing she was being watched, and made eye contact with Clarke. The Commander's face instantly wore an expression of nervousness as she excused herself from her labor team and began to make her way towards the drop ship.

Clarke found herself taking a deep breath in preparation for the interaction to come. Lexa looked like a child getting ready to be scowled, trying not to make eye contact with Clarke as she made her way into the drop ship.

"How are you feeling?" She asked genuinely.

"Rested," Clarke answered. "Much better now knowing that I don't have to worry about anyone's safety for the time being. You really did a lot for us, you know? More than you probably should have for complete strangers." She made her way back to the makeshift bed and sat down.

"I had to ensure peace. My people don't need another enemy to fight, and yours deserve a chance at survival," Lexa said, maintaining a polite diplomatic air.

"Sit with me," Clarke said sincerely, placing a hand down next to her. Lexa's heart skipped a beat, already believing that she was one step closer to having Clarke sooner than she'd imagine. She joined her on the bed, but left a considerable space in between her and Clarke. "Did you know?" Clarke resumed.

"Yes," Lexa admitted, "but only when I had untied you from the post in the cabin. I wanted to tell you, but you were so frightened, I did not want to seem selfish. I wanted you to be comfortable, I couldn't force the news on you, not when you were so shaken. I did not mean to keep it from you forever."

Clarke listened to these words solemnly, processing them. "When were you going to tell me?"

"I wanted to do it today… or the next time I stopped by to observe the progress of your camp. I wouldn't have stayed away for long, I don't think I could." Lexa was surprised at herself for being so open, stunned by the calming effect Clarke's aura had on her.

"Did you do this… all for me?" Clarke investigated gently. "Back when you held me captive, you did not express any desire to offer my people anything, save for healing Jasper. Probably as a courtesy- but since you said you did not find out until you untied me… you offered all these things after you had found out. Was this entire trading post agreement done just for me?"

Lexa nodded as she swallowed, nervous for the first time in her life since the Conclave. "It's excessive, isn't it? I knew it, I just… I couldn't help myself. I wanted an excuse to constantly see you if I took too long to introduce myself to you as your soulmate."

"It's… a lot," Clarke chuckled, "But maybe you'll inspire people to act on destiny, like you did."

"They can't know we're soulmates," Lexa interrupted. "Not yet, at least."

"Why not?" Clarke asked.

"Because then they will piece together that I came up with this proposal to be with you, and not an act of peace and charity. This whole spectacle will be seen as fraudulent," Lexa explained mournfully. "They will see me as irresponsible in my future general actions as Heda."

Clarke shifted on the bed uncomfortably, not satisfied with the idea of having to keep her soulmate a secret. "I've waited years to find my soulmate," she began, preparing to fight for this.

"So have I," Lexa chimed in. "I'm sorry, Clarke, but I'm a leader, and love is an easy target for my enemies, you have to respect the fact that our romance may start out fragile. I have to make sure no one can use me against you, and vice versa. We can't just walk out in the open, not at the start of everything. They must get used to your people first before they can know anything, that way it seems like we found each other along the way, and not at the start."

Clarke exhaled deeply.

"I can understand if you do not want to be with me right now, asking someone to keep their love a secret is a tremendous request… that's why I expressed my desire to speak with you in private." Lexa said, filling the silence.

"You think I'm not going to want to be with you if being with you means being your secret…" Clarke summed up, looking Lexa in the eyes. "You fear your people might invalidate you if they figure out that you've done all this to win me…" Lexa could feel the rejection coming and, turned away, contemplating getting ready to leave once Clarke delivered the killing blow. "When I lived on the Ark, there was no way I could've known that my soulmate lived on Earth, I thought they lived in one of the many space stations as well. I've always felt that living in the Ark provided a minimum sense of life satisfaction. Jobs didn't feel like pursuing a dream like they tried to make us feel about it, truly nutritious food, not just filler, was difficult to come by, and any truly creative skill was always suppressed by either the lack of tools or education. Many people on the Ark invested a lot of life's energy into finding their soulmate in order to give their life some fulfilment. When I got my symbols from you, I have to admit, I felt like everyone else on the Ark- completely consumed by your existence. Now that I'm on Earth, and am surrounded by this overbearing thought that life now has endless opportunities to experience, one would think that I could rid you from my wants and needs… The universe wants us to be together," Clarke continued, and she reached to gently hold Lexa's hand, "… and I want us to be together, too."

Lexa turned back to face Clarke and studied her face, her soul filling with hope and dreams of their upcoming love.

"You do?" The Commander asked, containing giddy feelings from spilling into her persona.

"Yes," Clarke answered. "I will be with you as subtly as you want in public, but you must promise me that we'll be able to experience the love that we're destined to feel with each other. I can wait for you, but don't take too long. I don't know how I can resist the urge to be affectionate with you now that I know who you are to me."

Lexa smiled, content with Clarke's current perspective. "I don't plan on leaving you dry throughout this," she said, trying to sound comforting, but felt the desire to cringe when she realized the faint sexual innuendo that unintendedly lingered in her comment. "I will still engage with you in having our love grow when we are in private. I wouldn't torture you, or myself, like that."

"Good," Clarke mumbled, watching herself entwine her fingers with Lexa's. She then looked up, an idea dancing behind her eyes. "Shall we go help the others build?" She offered.

"Yes," Lexa nodded, "We have been gone for too long, it is time to return."

As they both sat up from the bed, Clarke kept her hand held onto Lexa's, feeling her heart fill with energy she had never experienced before. This must have been the start to indulging in what a soul-bond had to offer. Before they reached the parachute curtains of the drop ship, Clarke darted a quick kiss on Lexa's cheek.

The Commander fell victim to a violent blush that conquered her complexion.

"That's all you get for now," Clarke innocently teased with a smile, and slipped her hand out of Lexa's grasp. She stepped out first, followed by the baffled and smitten Heda. As they made their way to the center of the labor, their budding love-struck mentality caused them to miss the sight of Bellamy, who had watched them leave the drop ship, his trademark paranoia already putting pieces together…


	7. Chapter 7

Three longhouses had been thoroughly completed by the time the darkness of night had crept into the camp. Clarke was impressed with the craftsmanship and the speed with which the combined forces of the Grounders and the inexperienced Arkers had built. It reminded her of one of the many lessons she attended in a sociology class back on the Ark, and how an old society of people called the Amish would raise an entire barn in one day. The last two promised longhouses would have to be built the next day.

In a further attempt at coexisting, the Grounders had begun to set up a distribution booth for dinner, which a group of them had been preparing for the past hour or so. Some of the Arkers with common courtesy had helped them prep, not wanting the Grounders to do everything. Even during this moment of rest from all the construction, the camp was still bustling with activity. Clarke was satisfied that at least some of her people were pulling their weight in nurturing this alliance. In fact, the delinquents had actually been excited enough to share their pungent concoction that they called moonshine. Respecting Lexa's request to not pursue her in public, Clarke sought out the company of the people she felt were becoming her friends. Sitting down at one of the many bonfires, she joined Octavia, Wells, Finn, Monty, and a shivering, yet recovering Jasper.

"Ah, the woman of the hour!" Octavia toasted, working on her third serving of moonshine, as Clarke sat down on a stump among them. "Talk about luck, I don't think this kind of easy alliance has ever been made in the history of mankind."

"Unity day," Wells reminded the verging inebriated Octavia.

"Not the same," the lone sister slurred, "Unity Day was about the remaining human stations coming together to save the species. This is different because these Grounders could've killed us in a second. They don't need us to survive one bit, but they took us under their wing. Talk about a lottery outcome."

Clarke shied away from commenting, knowing that she wouldn't be able to share the exact reason why, regarding Lexa's immense generosity, to her friends.

"You did well, Clarke, the Ark will be proud when they arrive," comforted Finn, resting his hand on her knee. Clarke looked down at it gravely, and subtly shifted in her seat to move away from his reach. In the corner of her eyes, she could see that Octavia took notice, but kept her thoughts to herself. Finn on the other hand looked hurt. It touched Clarke's feelings, but she knew that she had to douse his attraction to her quick, now that Lexa was in her life as her verified soulmate.

"Thanks," Clarke said, trying to move on in the conversation as if nothing had happened. "I had to make sure everyone stayed safe. The easier it is for us to live, the more the Ark will prepare to join us. We can't forget about the mission to our people." She took a quick glance at the metal vital-tracking band still shackled to her wrist. She wondered how her mother was doing, and if seeing Clarke's pulse filled her with more and more hope of their reunion.

"Isn't it interesting, though?" Octavia mumbled, "That we were all sent here to save the human race, when… if you think about it, since Grounders exist, and who knows how much of the Earth they inhabit, having the Ark die wouldn't put humanity at risk of complete extinction at all."

"It's still not a good thing," Wells corrected. "Just because there are humans here, and civilized humans at that, that doesn't mean that humanity doesn't need the addition to Earth that the Ark would bring."

"Why do you always have to be so… so… such a killjoy?" Octavia accused Wells, pointing at him.

"It's just the truth," the son of the Chancellor defended, "We're doing humanity a favor by adding more people to the environment."

"I can only imagine," chuckled a drowsy Jasper, who was still wrapped up in a blanket to still the chills caused by his healing wounds, "How this is gonna go. The Grounders are gonna come to us only to find the shittiest goods ever. Horribly skinned animals, crappily cut meat, shriveled and bruised fruit, scrap metal trinkets. Adding us to the Grounder economy will put them in a recession." At this he let out as strong of a laugh that his open chest would allow.

"We'll get better at things," Monty said, looking off towards the other merry groups of Grounders and Arkers sharing drinks and meals. "I'm sure they know that. But some of us have skills, like I'm sure we can farm, but that produce takes a while. Hunting will take time, but I'm sure they'll tell us where to properly damage an animal without ruining the quality of a pelt, and how to put down the animal in the most humane way. All that stuff. We'll have to remember all the plants taught in biology and Earth skills to recognize poisons and medicinal ones. I think we've got this."

"Well someone's got it all figured out," summed Octavia. "All we really have to worry about is the first problem that arose when we landed: leadership."

"I think Clarke has already established that," Wells acknowledged with a weak smile.

"Yeah, but what's gonna stop my brother from _usurping_ her? He's been trying to take control of everyone since we landed, and everything he's done has been undone by Clarke's tremendous diplomacy skills. You know Bellamy would've had us just die trying to kill them."

"You don't have much faith in your brother, do you?" Finn asked.

Octavia's face morphed angrily. "I _know_ my brother. I'm saying I know what he's capable of. He is trustworthy, there's just something bugging him, and I haven't figured it out yet. Bellamy's been all about protecting me my entire life, so I wouldn't be surprised if he thinks taking leadership is the right thing to do for _us_. Not the 100, just me and him. This is more than him wanting to be the alpha dog, trust me, I just haven't figured it out yet."

"Just make sure he doesn't screw this up," Jasper said, still jubilant, and weakly trying to reach for Monty's cup of moonshine.

"Oh, hey, look at that," smiled Monty, who pointed to Octavia's bare forearm. The group all watched as a drawing of a forest began to grow. "Someone's trying to get your attention."

"Oh yeah," Octavia nodded, watching the ink spread, "I think my soulmate might be a Grounder."

"Well that will certainly set your brother off," Wells noted.

"What makes you think they're a Grounder?" Finn inquired.

"Oh you know, just clues. I never experienced a lucid dream until we landed here on Earth, and my mate has always drawn things that were never on the Ark, like the sky, mountains, riverbanks- they're very artistic, as you can tell."

"Well Clarke used to draw Earth scenery," Wells pointed out.

"Is that so?" Octavia asked, drunkenly raising her eyebrows at Clarke. "Are you my soulmate, Clarke?" she teased.

"No," returned Clarke with a scoff, but still trying to maintain a playful manner.

"Gosh, giving out so much rejection in one night, huh, Clarke?" Octavia giggled, making Finn and Clarke tense again. Monty and Jasper watched, amused, while Wells felt like the odd duck out.

"I'm going to go check up on… others," Clarke said, wanting an excuse to remove herself from the now uncomfortable situation, as she stood up and prepared to leave.

"Clarke, wait," Finn got up as well, following her away from the small circle of friends.

"Finn, no, go back to them," Clarke waved off over her shoulder.

"Can we just talk? Just a small word?" he begged.

Clarke stopped in her tracks, exasperated yet sympathetic. "What is it?"

His face furrowed worriedly, feeling all confidence disappear in the presence of her negative energy. "I just… I just wanted to say that I really like you."

"I know," Clarke said, pitying him. "But we're not meant to be, so you best let me go."

"But how do you know that?" Finn asked.

"Finn, I can show you right now that we're not meant to be together, the same way I showed Wells years ago," Clarke said, shifting her weight to her left side, growing impatient.

"So that's it?" Finn asked, "If our markings don't show up on each other you wouldn't even consider being with me? What if we never find our soulmates? People on the Ark rarely do."

 _But I have_ , is what Clarke wanted to say. "I'm not going to resort to someone I know that I don't want," she said instead, and immediately regretted her choice of words. Sure, she was going to reject him, but perhaps she should have been a bit gentle. Finn felt his head and heart get heavy and looked away from her, yet stood his ground. "Listen," Clarke attempted, "I did feel a small attraction to you when we first arrived on Earth, but it is gone now. I know that we're not meant to be. Don't waste your time on me, Finn. I'm sure there's someone out there who, soulmate or not, will reciprocate."

"I uh," Finn started to mutter. "I better get back to the others." Looking at Clarke one last time, he turned around and walked back, leaving Clarke alone in the middle of the quaint celebrations.

Sighing, Clarke began to walk aimlessly through the camp, just taking in the sight of the coexisting happening. She wanted to take a look inside one of the complete longhouses, but on her way towards the closest one, she found a campfire with a familiar face among the group taking in the fire's warmth.

Lexa was taking distgusted sips of the Arker moonshine, while her three riders were at her side, pulling apart some kind of jerky to share amongst each other.

"You know, if you don't like it, you don't have to finish it," Clarke pointed out. Lexa and her riders looked up at her from their seated position. She could see the flames of the pit dance in Lexa's irises.

"Manners, Clarke," Lexa simply stated. "If I have been offered a drink by a new ally, I must finish it. Symbolism, one could say."

"They won't see it that way," Clarke explained, "They'll just see it as you can't handle liquor."

"All the more reason now for me to finish it," Lexa grumbled, looking at the clear substance still half full in her cup.

"May I join you?" Clarke asked. Lexa looked up at her, studying her intentions briefly, yet gave in with a nod. Sitting opposite of Lexa, with the fire separating them, Clarke watched Lexa's riders take her in.

"These are my most trusted warriors," Lexa introduced. "Anya, at my left here, is my mentor. Indra, at my right, who you have met before, is one of my most prized lieutenants. And Gustus, next to Anya, is one of my most loyal guards."

"Pleased to meet you," Clarke said with a routine smile. "Thank you all, for whatever role you played in having this alliance happen."

"Many are worried about your people, Clarke kom Skaikru," said Anya, intrigue playing on her face. "You are leaderless, correct?"

"Not overall," Clarke cleared her throat. "In the Ark, we have a Chancellor and a small council. They lead us, and they are the ones who sent us here. But as in terms of our camp, yes, there is no leader."

"And will your leader and your people be joining you from the Sky?" Anya continued. Clarke could tell that this was another interrogation, but when she looked at Lexa for reassurance, the Commander just stretched and watched, eager for the answer as well. Lexa may have been her soulmate, but it seemed she would always be doing her job to her people.

"I'm not sure. It all depends on our survival rate. If we survive, they will come when they are ready to travel."

"How many of you are there, would you say?" Anya asked, raising her eyebrow.

"Too many to count. Thousands, I'm sure. Probably in the tens of thousands. We're all split up in different stations, and I have never been to all of them. So I can't give you a solid number, unfortunately."

Gustus muttered something in their language, and Clarke watched Lexa stare off as she heard his words.

"Five miles won't be enough to house all of your people," Lexa began, "When your people come down, they can no longer be seen as a small trading post community. You will be as large as a clan. This can be seen as a threat to the other Clans. Tell me, Clarke, will you people respect this agreement we have created today?"

"I can get them too," Clarke offered. "Our communication with them was destroyed in the landing, but we have people working on repairing the radios. My mother is part of the Council, so I can have influence on our leader's decisions. Once the radios are repaired, I will contact them and tell them about your people and what you have done for us. Their goal is to make the human race survive, so they should be grateful for what you've done for us."

"And land?" Lexa inquired, seeming regal even on a tree stump.

"I will make sure they recognize your authority and ownership," Clarke negotiated. "I will make sure that they honor your rules to petition."

"When your people get the radios working, I would like to be present," Lexa commanded instinctually. "I want to be there when you tell your Council about me and my people. I trust you, Clarke, but I do not know how your Council operates and what their behaviors are like. I wish to be the one to represent my people and our motives."

Clarke blinked at this. She wasn't sure how the Ark would take the news about a foreign power. Yes, the Ark wanted humanity to survive, but just like what Octavia had said earlier, finding out that there are more humans than just the Ark will cause a major shift in perspective. Would the Ark immediately start planning to be more in power than the Grounders? Would that become their new concern? Power and conquest?

"I'm not sure if that is best," Clarke warned, "I think I should be the one to break the news to them that we're not the only humans anymore."

"What do you think they're capable of?" Lexa asked, sitting up straight.

"Instinct," Clarke shrugged. She could feel Lexa looking her up and down as she spoke.

"Are you people like that boy?" she asked, seriously. "The one who leads your riflemen."

"Bellamy?" Clarke asked, as Lexa nodded in clarification. She considered this, and her mind couldn't shake the association. The Ark was all about rapid punishment, no true investigations or tolerance of motives. "Maybe," Clarke sighed, "The Ark has never truly practiced the art of getting to know the true reasons behind things. Bellamy doesn't know anything about your people, Lexa, I don't either. Survival to the Ark means getting rid of those who are a threat to our resources, and I feel that this is the mindset he is operating under. Another group probably just means another threat…"

Lexa's riders began to shift uncomfortably.

"You're not selling a future alliance, Clarke, I hope you realize that," Lexa said, remaining still.

"All they need is to have a paradigm shift, that's it. Once I show tell them that how we lived on the Ark is not how we'll survive on Earth, they will change. They will adapt, I can promise you this, Lexa. Please give me time," Clarke pleaded. "You saw today how many of people have already bonded with yours. They _wanted_ to work with your people, they are accepting your goods and skills gratefully. It won't be long for the rest of the Ark to learn that coexisting is our best option."

"There's nothing we can do now but put our faith in you, Clarke," Lexa said. "Trigeda will recognize you as the Skaikru ambassador. Know that if your remaining people fail to honor our agreement, I will have no other choice but to consider them an enemy."

"I won't let you down," Clarke said firmly.

"Heda, should we ready the horses?" Indra asked. Clarke's ears perked up. Were the Grounders leaving?

"Where are you going?" Clarke asked.

"We are taking our people back to a nearby village to rest for the remainder of the night. They have to go back to their homes soon." Lexa said.

"But…" Clarke searched for something to say. She wanted Lexa to stay. "We need your help building the rest of the longhouses," she resorted.

Lexa's lips curled into a smirk, amused, knowing exactly why Clarke was trying to stall her, and it touched her heart.

"Your people have learned enough on what to do to complete the rest," Lexa informed softly, as her riders began to stand up.

"What about skills?" Clarke blurted. "Show us how to hunt? We're all terribly inexperienced, and don't know we can give you the revenue you seek if we don't know how to properly catch and clean game. At least teach us these things."

"Tomorrow?" Lexa asked, her smirk still present. "You want my people to stay?"

"At least just for tomorrow morning," Clarke requested, trying to ask for the smallest favor Lexa could expense, just for more time together. "We'll feed your people breakfast with whatever we catch, please, just one more day?"

"Just one more morning," Lexa said. She wanted to spend more time with Clarke, but she had to distance herself for now, she had already explained this.

"That's fine," Clarke accepted, "Just don't leave yet."

Lexa nodded. "I have to spread the word. Go Clarke, inform your people as well."

Clarke returned the nod and watched Lexa walk away with her riders, making their way to Grounder team after team. Turning around herself, Clarke let her selfishness take hold. Before she told her people, she wanted to find a way to be in private with Lexa just one more time. She was dying to get to know her. There were so many questions she wanted to ask, as all she ever wanted was to paint the picture that was her soulmate. Stepping into the drop ship, she found a marker rolling on ground and picked it up. Snatching the cap off, she rolled up her sleeve and began to write…


	8. Chapter 8

"You know I can't be here for long," Lexa said with a genuine smile, stepping over a large tree root. Clarke turned around to face the Commander, unable to suppress her own beaming smile.

"I know," Clarke said, taking a few steps towards Lexa, meeting her halfway. "I just wanted to learn a bit about you, if that's okay? I can't help myself." Only a few minutes ago she had hastily written on her arm for Lexa to meet her only half a mile north of the drop ship. She gave into greed, not wanting to let her soulmate go. How could she? Not knowing anything about her, Clarke's instinct to pursue Lexa was unavoidable.

"What would you like to know?" Lexa asked quietly, keeping her words just for Clarke. She knew her riders and subjects were still wrapping up their materials from the Skaikru camp, preparing to sleep the night away, but she feared there wouldn't be much time for privacy. Sooner or later her riders would grow concern, and no doubt cause tension in the camp looking for her.

"Everything," Clarke said with a soft chuckle. Lexa returned the laugh, looking down at Clarke's hands instead of making eye contact. Her eyes were too beautiful for Lexa to gaze too long.

"Everything can be said another time," Lexa answered, still too bashful to look up for long. She felt completely disarmed in Clarke's presence, now that she knew what Clarke was to her. When they had first met, and in the company of her riders, she was able to comfortably play the role of Heda, but now all alone with her soulmate, she was stripped bare of all authoritative auras.

"We can just play a quick question game," Clarke suggested eagerly. "Come, let's sit." Nearby the girls were some large boulders, perhaps even imbued with the remnants of manmade concrete. They were probably in the site of an old town that existed before the nuclear apocalypse, now reduced to the rubble of a handful of slabs. Clarke sat on one that was large enough to seat them both, and Lexa humbly sat beside her. "I'll ask a question, then you ask one, and we keep going until we run out."

Lexa nodded.

"How old are you?" Clarke started off easy.

"Twenty," Lexa replied. Clarke raised her eyebrows in contemplation.

"I'm seventeen," Clarke reciprocated, watching Lexa express her own astonishment. "I'm turning eighteen soon, though."

"You're young," Lexa evaluated, "You give off an older feeling."

"I feel you kinda grow up fast in the Ark," Clarke explained. "It's your turn to ask a question."

"What is the Ark like?" Lexa asked, mustering the strength to look at Clarke's deep ocean blue eyes.

"Compressed," Clarke answered, feeling her word choice was absolutely appropriate. "Do you ever get this feeling that the place you're in is so small that it is actually suppressing your mind? I know that sounds weird, but living on the Ark… it just didn't feel right, or big enough. As if my instincts were trying to tell me that I needed higher ceilings in order to grow…" Clarke watched Lexa listen to her, feeling as if she were losing her. "It's not a place to grow, mentally or spiritually. It was just humanity trapped in a box, pretending everything was normal just so that we could sanely plan our trip back to Earth."

"I meant your people, Clarke," Lexa smiled, "Your culture. But it is nice to know how self-aware you are of your soul. I can only image that that is the reason why your mind felt so cramped in your home. The mind needs large open spaces to function primly."

Clarke blushed slightly, "Sorry, that's just always how I felt about the Ark. I never got the chance to say it when I lived there because of our sensitive government; as if it was a space version of Orwell's 1984- the thought police would come get me for not liking my life."

 _Focus, Clarke._ Clarke's mind put up the red flags to notify her of her rambling.

"We all have a part to play," Clarke began explaining, "As I'm sure your society is the same. It's kind of hard to be what you truly want to be on the Ark, since you're more likely to earn a living working as what the Ark needs, instead of your dreams. For example, I would love to spend my time just drawing. I absolutely love art, but there really is no economy for it, not room, as creating works of art would probably take up too much space and resources. I decided to follow my mother's footsteps in the medical field…"

 _Clarke! Focus. On. The. Question._

"The majority of us have never had real meat more than once a year. Everything is synthetically made to resemble certain tastes, but not truly derived from a plant or animal. Our food still carried nutritional benefits, but we knew we were not eating natural food. We have small farm stations, who work on botany and farming, but their goods were usually reserved for higher ranking stations. It was not equally distributed. Medicine is rationed, as we do not have what we need to produce truly potent medicine, or keep up with demand. Because of the lack of resources and space in general, no one is allowed to have more than one child. If they break this law, or any other law, they are immediately executed if the individual is over the age of eighteen. If they are a minor, they are held in prison until they reach the age of execution."

Lexa listened intently, fascinated and disgruntled by this culture her soulmate was raised in. "Your people sent you and your group to return to Earth, to expand your population so they wouldn't have to resort to these laws, I assume?"

Clarke smirked uncomfortably, wanting to answer yes, but knew it would have to reveal her criminal status, and that was something she wasn't ready to disclose. Not yet, at least. She just didn't want her soulmate to judge or reject her. "I think it's my turn to ask a question," she said instead. Lexa stiffened, accepting the subject change for something to ask about later, as a bit of suspicion grew in her stomach.

"Do you remember our first message?" Clarke asked nostalgically, looking up at the starry night sky, wondering if she could see the Ark from here.

"Of course," Lexa said quickly, not needing any time to think back. "I thought I was going to die that day."

Clarke's head snapped away from the sky to stare at Lexa, puzzled, waiting for an explanation.

"In my culture," Lexa began to explain," We pick our leaders through a combat of eligibility. I was among a group suitable to compete in the Conclave after our previous Commander died trying to fight the Mountain. I had sent messages to you ever since I turned sixteen. Now that I know you were too young at the time to receive them, I know why you never responded. I drew our sacred symbol, associated with our Commanders, hoping that you would recognize it and what it meant. I thought you were one of my people, as I'm sure you thought I was one of yours. I wanted to reach out to you one more time, just in case I was to die at the Conclave, and you did- when I needed you most, you were old enough and responded immediately. It meant so much to me. It was all I needed to peacefully pass onto the next life."

Clarke's eyes were wide throughout the whole story, thinking back on the day she received the infinity symbol, and what she was doing that day. To think that while she was stressing about an interview, her soulmate was afraid they were about to die. While she starred at the drawing consumed by bliss, her soulmate was full of fear. That was absolutely not what she thought had happened. She couldn't even imagine what it would have been like if Lexa had died after sending the infinity!

"I had no idea," Clarke stammered.

"You wouldn't have," Lexa smiled, looking back at Clarke's hands. "But I never anticipated that my soulmate would fall from the sky, so I guess we're even in terms of being clueless about each other in the past. Since it's my question now, what are these bracelets you all wear? I've noticed your entire party wears identical ones."

"They're vital trackers," Clarke said easily, holding up her wrist so that Lexa could see it better. "It reports my heartbeat and a few other cardiovascular information to the Ark. This is how my people will see that we are surviving."

Lexa absent-mindedly reached up to touch the silver bracelet, feeling how smoothly crafted it was. Clarke watched Lexa gently run her hands across the band, no doubt imagining its capabilities. Catching a glimpse of Clarke watching her, Lexa immediately recognized what she was doing and pulled her hand away from her soulmate's wrists.

"It's okay," Clarke coaxed, "You can touch me." As she said this, Clarke was well aware that her own hand was delicately linking her fingers with Lexa's. The Commander didn't stop her, so Clarke figured she could keep cautiously caressing her. It is phenomenal how the most gentle of touches provide such ecstasy to new lovers, and this was the case for Clarke and Lexa, feeling absolutely electrified by the grazing of their fingertips. Lexa's line of sight dropped to Clarke's naturally rosy thin lips, feeling a strong magnetic draw.

With a great feat of strength, Lexa resisted and pulled away from her lover. "I must return to the camp," she said, clearing her throat. Clarke's soul plummeted inside her. She too had felt the pull of desire, the universe urging them to surrender to the start of physical seduction. However, she respected Lexa's retreat, knowing that it was more important to wait for them both to be ready. She watched Lexa stand up and walk a few feet away from the boulder. Lexa stopped in her tracks abrupty. She was thinking.

After a few more seconds, Lexa turned on her heels to reface Clarke, who was still seated. "If you would like, Clarke," she started, resuming her natural Heda façade, "I can show you around the area one day? Since you informed me that you are an admirer of art, there is an old museum great miles away that holds the masterpieces of the Old World. I'm sure that would… inspire your passion for the craft."

Clarke smiled and removed herself from the boulder, making her way towards Lexa. "I would love to accompany you there," she said, content with the promise of another private moment together. Lexa nodded, pleased with herself for interesting Clarke.

"We should probably leave separately," Lexa said. Clarke nodded in agreement and watched her soulmate walk away. Clarke couldn't wait for the Grounders to get used to her people. A part of her was disheartened by the duty Lexa had to her people that was separating her from nurturing her soul bond, but she knew that she had imbued herself with the same responsibility to her own. It was up to her and the rest of her camp to make way for the remaining Ark. An entire population rested in her hands.

Sighing, after figuring enough time had passed between Lexa departing, she began to make her way through the woods too, thinking about her future quality time with Lexa. She wondered if sculptures would be at this museum too, and if all mediums or art would be found there. She had seen many photographs of paintings in her text books, but she knew nothing would compare to the awe of seeing some masterpieces in person.

"What was that?" asked a deep voice, startling Clarke from her reverie. She realized that she had finally made it back to the outskirts of the camp, and was greeted by Bellamy. His face seemed more earnest than the "charismatic" dictatorial persona he had been masquerading with these past couple of days.

"What was what?" Clarke asked, pretending to not understand the context of his question.

"Were you in the woods with Commander Lexa?" he rephrased, keeping his tone the same.

"… No," Clarke attempted to lie.

"I saw her leave from this same location not more than ten minutes ago. Were you in the woods with her? Yes or no?"

"Yes," Clarke confessed, sensing herself becoming defensive.

"Were you making another agreement without the presence of our people?"

"Bellamy, it's none of your business."

"Yes it is," he said, taking a step towards her, and gripping her arm. Clarke twisted herself free and began to walk briskly away from him. "Clarke!"

"We were just talking, Bellamy," Clarke grumbled.

"About what? What could you be talking about that you had to do it completely isolated from everyone else?" Bellamy dragged his feet after her, and reached for her arm again, successfully pulling her back. This time she couldn't break from his grip, and her forearm was exposed, reading: _meet me in half a mile north of the dropship_.

Bellamy released her arm with a throw after he had read the words.

"Makes sense now," he sighed exasperatedly. "So the Commander's your soulmate…"

"You can't tell anyone, Bellamy, she thinks her people will see all this as favoritism and possibly rebel against her and us." Clarke began to plead.

"Well it is favoritism," he said bluntly.

"You can't tell anyone," Clarke repeated. Bellamy's face scrunched, like he was struggling with an internal debate. "Keeping it a secret keeps our people safe," Clarke tried.

"We'll discuss this in the morning, Clarke," Bellamy said suddenly. "We can use this to our advantage, whether you like it or not."

"What are you talking about?" Clarke was dumbfounded, wondering just how much more they could benefit from the Grounders outside of what Lexa had already freely offered.

"In the morning," he repeated. With that, he turned around and began to jog back to the main camp, leaving Clarke with an uneasy feeling stirring in her stomach.


	9. Chapter 9

Clarke had sacrificed the luxury of sleeping in the newly furnished longhouses that first night for someone else to have that privilege, and slept in the drop ship like she had ever since the 100 first landed on Earth. She said she would sleep in the longhouses when all of them were complete, as making sure everyone had shelter first was her top priority. This inspired the delinquents to put Clarke on a reputational pedestal higher than Bellamy, which obviously irked the stowaway. What put even more salt in that wound was the fact that Octavia eagerly supported Clarke's humbleness, and decided to sacrifice her own spot in their new shelter as well. Bellamy tried to follow suit, but it took some threatening to get Murphy, Miller, and Atom to leave the longhouses too.

While Clarke did believe in tending to others before herself, a part of her knew there was an underlying benefit from sleeping in the new houses: separating herself from Bellamy and whatever plan it was he was brewing regarding Lexa being her soulmate. All this tension was probably encouraging him to make his plan even worse.

The next morning, many of the Arkers were awake before the Grounders made their way from their distant field back to the Skaikru camp. Bellamy seized this opportunity of an absent Lexa to grab Clarke by the arm, and drag her to the top level of the drop ship, which he ordered his thugs to keep guarded as they spoke in private.

"What do you want, Bellamy?" Clarke asked, jerking her arm free from his grasp. Bellamy furrowed his eyebrows and crossed his arms, his body language communicating an attempt at authority.

"How long have you known that Lexa was your soulmate?" He asked, getting straight to it.

"Yesterday, when she showed up at the river to discuss terms," Clarke replied firmly, standing her ground by not cowering to his aura.

"Impossible, you two knew about it for longer than that. That's why she offered us so much," Bellamy continued, his voice getting a little louder.

"It's not impossible, Bellamy, I've only known her since the day she kidnaped me, and then I didn't speak to her for three days after that. I had no idea."

"Oh really?" Bellamy asked, raising his eyebrow, "So you're saying that you two weren't communicating through marks during those past three days?"

"We didn't," Clarke defended, "In fact, she didn't write back to me at all during those three days." She was lying of course, but telling Bellamy that Lexa had called her beautiful was really not relevant to the conversation. "I asked to meet who ever my soulmate was, but she never replied."

"Did she find out the same day you did? Did she do all this for you?"

Clarke was silent, fighting with her pride which wanted to gloat in Lexa's devotion to her, but knew where Bellamy was about to go with this.

"She did, didn't she?" Bellamy asked, again. "I don't know how, but she did. God knows what they did to you when they kidnapped you- maybe she saw a mark. But she knew, and you can't tell me she didn't. All this was just to win you over… and to keep us from being a threat."

Clarke rolled her eyes, "Bellamy, she showed us how to build shelter, and any minute now they're going to show us how to hunt, fish, and forage safe plants. Are you really still paranoid about this?"

"Clarke, you don't see it because you're blinded by your bond. This was just convenience for her. She probably would've slaughtered us had it not been for you-"

"Wrong," Clarke interrupted, "You may be afraid of other people in power, but I know she's not a murderer. She told me she didn't know until after she had set me free. Before she cut my bonds she had already deemed us not a threat, which is the only reason why she let me go."

"So she did know," Bellamy said, returning to his original inquiry. "Clarke, you may see it as an attempt at peace, but it's really just an opportunity for her to develop free labor. You can't look me in the eye and tell me that there is no other ulterior motive than just keeping you in her good graces. Do you really think she has no enemies? We're probably producing labor that she doesn't have to pay for, retrieving goods to help her fight those in her way. You think she's just helping us out, but how do you know that when she was discussing this with her advisors that she didn't sell the idea to them by mentioning that we were just a source of profit? You say she built shelter and is teaching us trades so we can thrive. We can't even leave a five mile radius! She built us a labor camp. That's all this is."

"Bellamy, that's enough, you're thinking too much into this," Clarke said, really getting tired of Bellamy's twisted thinking. "She said we can petition for more land, we just can't freely take it whenever we feel like it. Besides, she has to make sure that we're not dangerous-"

"You said she already determined that when she held you hostage," Bellamy aggressively pointed out. "You think she's so safe and full of good intentions- not only are you blinded by soul-bond, you're sick with Stockholm syndrome. So devoted, like she's such a trust worthy person, when she interrogated you! Only thinking of yourself, and not your people!"

"Stop!" Clarke shouted, her brain pounding behind her eyes. "Bellamy, what is wrong with you? Why are you so scared? You act like we were going to thrive all on our own, without shelter, food, _a system_ , and Mount Weather. We have to make due until the Ark joins us, if they ever join us. I secured protection and trade, how have I not taken care of everyone?"

"I'm _scared_ ," Bellamy seethed, putting emphasis on the word, "because I know what the Ark is capable of. You really think that we're going to be greeted with open arms and… and, medals- for setting up a camp? That we're actually going to be granted freedom and a clean record on the spot? And you know that the second the Ark finds out that we're under someone else's government that there's going to be significant consequences. You would think the girl condemned for treason would've figured that out."

The level of the drop ship was getting warmer and warmer as each second of their rage continued.

"The Ark will understand. Lexa is promising peace and protection-"

"And she'll hand us over, trading post, goods, and everything the second the Ark arrives? She'll probably enslave the others once they arrive." His sarcasm was bitter, and he leaned closer to Clarke for emphasis. "The best deal you could've done for your people was to have her leave us alone."

"I've had enough," Clarke said, shaking her head and turning to leave.

"You _sold_ everyone. You _sold_ everyone for your soulmate! I hope you realize how despicable that is," Bellamy continued, watching her walk away to the hatch. "And I'm going to tell everyone."

This froze Clarke in her tracks, her hand stuck to the handle of the door, remembering Lexa's request to keep their soul-bond a secret.

"Why?" Clarke asked turning around, not wanting to be seen as desperate and beg for Bellamy's silence.

"Our people have a right to know why they now owe their life to the Commander, they need to know the truth."

"But they're happy, Bellamy," Clarke said, working on some kind of manipulation quickly forming in her head. "You think they're just going to stop enjoying this because Lexa and I are destined for each other? You think they're going to be mad that I found a way to keep them fed with real meat and grains, keep them sheltered and protected?"

Clarke watched Bellamy's face as he looked down, considered her words, hoping that was enough to disarm his threat.

He looked back up with her, disgruntled, and said, "They're happy with it for now. While it's still new and fun. But when they have quotas to meet and working for hours on end, not being allowed to be free… that's when they'll realize the truth and hate this."

"I'm done with this," Clarke said, content with the small victory. She pulled the hatch open and began to climb the ladder down. Feeling a bit uncomfortable as Bellamy's thugs watched her make her way down, she decided to skip the last handful of rungs by jumping off the ladder.

"All finished?" asked Murphy, who was sitting against the wall instead of standing like a true guard like Miller and Atom.

"Completely," Clarke replied with spite, thinking about Bellamy. But her anger was quickly dissipated, as she realized what Murphy was doing- lazily sitting against the wall and writing on his forearm. There was something about remembering that everyone else had a soulmate that made Clarke grounded again. She wondered briefly who was destined for Murphy- if they were still on the Ark or not, who was destined for Bellamy, and Octavia, Jasper, Finn, even Wells. Biology couldn't stop most people from having partners before meeting their soulmate, if they ever did, but remembering that these partners were meant for someone else was always such a bizarre realization.

Coming back to reality, Clarke stepped out of the drop ship, hearing Bellamy start to climb down the ladder after her. As she walked past the parachute curtain of the entrance, she saw that the camp was already in a hustle and bustle, and surprisingly, Octavia was carrying a dead dear with a Grounder.

"Did you hunt that?" Clarke asked in astonishment, stopping the two in their tracks.

"Sure did," Octavia replied proudly. "Took me two hours to find this guy. Hit him once… incorrectly. So Lincoln here told me that it was only right to find him and end his misery. Let me tell you, tracking is challenging and hunting takes a lot of patience." The Grounder helping Octavia carry the game smiled politely at Clarke.

"The camp was calm only thirty minutes ago, how did it take you two hours to get this?"

"Well I couldn't sleep last night. I was too restless, so I went for a walk , stumbled upon the Grounder camp not too far from here, and signed up to help Lincoln and Indra, I'm sure you met her already- go for a hunt." Octavia was all smiles, and Clarke believed she had never seen such an expression of pride in one's work and accomplishment during her days in the Ark. "In fact, Indra said that I'm probably the only Skai person with the patience needed to hunt. I don't think she likes us all very much yet."

"She will get used to you all if you continue to show promise," Lincoln assured. "Excuse us," he said to Clarke, "But we need to take care of this deer as soon as we can."

Clarke nodded in understanding and let the two continue their walk to wherever they planned on skinning and gutting the animal.

"Clarke!"

Clarke's heart surged as she recognized the voice, and saw Lexa (guarded as usual), making her way down the field to the drop ship. Waking towards her a little too quickly, Clake met her halfway, and instinctually held out a hand. She wanted to touch Lexa, but knew she would have to start out slow, and there was nothing suspicious about a handshake. Lexa took her hand and shook it firmly, a warm smile on her face. When she let go of her hand, Lexa looked over Clarke's shoulder and addressed:

"Bellamy…"

Clarke turned around quickly to see that the young man was indeed near her, and she began to wonder just how long he had been outside of the drop ship. Clarke looked up to Lexa, trying to read her intention through her eyes, but instead of looking back at her soulmate, Lexa extended her arm to Bellamy.

He looked at it for just a fraction of a second, and then grasped her hand in return, giving her a vigorous shake. "Commander," he returned.

"My people are already on their way to divide everyone into groups to learn the trades they are interested in. Some of my people have actually already taken some of yours on hunts, which I'm sure you're aware of. We intend to leave by noon, so that gives us only five hours left to instruct your people," Lexa could see the uneasiness behind Clarke's eyes, but the Commander knew what she was doing in involving Bellamy. "Since you two seem to be the most prominent Skaikru members, especially when it comes to leading and caring for your people, it is only good manners that we discuss our people's future together."

"I thought this had already been discussed," Bellamy said, his voice rough. Clarke prayed that he wouldn't go on the tangent he did in the drop ship. "We work, stick to our boundaries, and you keep us safe."

"That is correct," Lexa nodded, "However, this alliance will go a lot smoother if my people can recognize the Skaikru population altogether. Come, let us discuss in private how you plan to develop a sense of internal government. Who will be your leaders? Ambassadors? Etcetera. While I command that your people do not break the five mile radius, I will grant a few Skaikru members the privilege of leaving the boundaries due to titles."

Bellamy's ears must have perked at this. "Let's," and he ushered his arm in the direction leading back to the drop ship.


	10. Chapter 10

Lexa had led Clarke and Bellamy to the clearing north of the drop ship that Clarke had requested they meet the night before. The Commander was not new to politics, but both the Skaikru following her were. Granted Clarke had some insight, due to the fact that her mother was part of the Skaikru council, but Bellamy had nothing to lead his intuition but anxiety and paranoia.

"I understand that your people need to thrive and govern themselves within this local area, but you will always answer to me in the end," Lexa began instructing, as Clarke listened intently due to her newfound pleasure for diplomacy, while Bellamy couldn't keep the worry off his face. He still found it within himself to wait for Lexa to finish her statement. He knew it was better to hear the Commander out first so he wouldn't make a fool out of himself for asking questions. "You may select a Chancellor, or any title of a leader, using the methods of your culture. You may even elect an ambassador if you do not wish to give your local leader the responsibility of corresponding with the Twelve Clans on a regular basis. These two titles will be the start of Skaikru with privileges to leave your five-mile radius. If your people follow my rules and prove to be harmless, we will extend the privilege to more."

"What about protection?" Bellamy asked, his deep voice startling Clarke.

"If it makes Skaikru feel safe, I will assign some of my warriors to patrol the boundaries of your grounds." Lexa spoke this offer with a genuine nod of understanding, but she knew in the back of her mind that Bellamy was asking about something different.

"You keep mentioning that your people are wary of us," Bellamy began, presenting his argument professionally, "But I can't help but feel like you're not considering what my people may feel about yours. I want to establish a militia. As a colony, we deserve the right to be able to defend ourselves."

Lexa raised an eyebrow tentatively as she heard his words. History had always proved that arming a fanatic resulted in tragedy, but the Commander knew that this military security blanket was the only thing that was going to quell Bellamy's interference.

"You may have your militia," Lexa said, playing her card, "but it can only consist of the men you already have armed. That includes you, totally to four. With your kind of weapons, you do not need more than that for now."

"That's not a good ratio," Bellamy said, "That's not even one militia man per ten Arkers. How's that enough?"

"My people will be there to protect you too," Lexa said, raising her voice just a bit. "I _am_ being generous, Bellamy. This is just the beginning. Prove to be trustworthy and I will allow your community to grow. You don't want protection for your people, you want to be a contender against mine. I can assure you that trying to build an army against me will not be fruitful. Remember that you're at my mercy."

Clarke could feel the tension as she watched these two debate, and knew that it was going to take a turn for the worst if she didn't interfere in some way.

"We accept," Clarke said, earning Bellamy's shocked attention.

"Clarke, we're not finished yet," he said.

"Yes, we are. The Commander is being more than lenient. She already has with everything so far. Let's just be grateful that she's not taking away your guns. Don't you think that if she wanted us to be powerless that she would have taken them away by now?" Clarke knew that openly sharing Bellamy's concerns in front of Lexa was not a smart move in general when it came to politics, but she just _knew_ that they truly didn't have anything to fear from Lexa and the Grounders. "We can always petition for more rights within time, isn't that right, Commander?" Clarke asked, turning to look at Lexa for support.

The Commander nodded, "One step at a time, it's not much to ask for."

Bellamy let his guard retreat, as he came to terms with the simple request. If he wanted to feel safe, he would have to do it by the Commander's rules… for now.

"When your people have elected your officials, you must report this to one of my people, who will all be aware of this responsibility. These officials will then be escorted by my people to the capitol of Polis, where they will meet every other ambassador of my Clans. It is best that everyone be familiar with each other as soon as possible, so that when we see a Skai person outside their grounds, we will be able to recognize them as people of importance."

"Fine," Bellamy agreed. The three of them shook hands to finalize the deal, and turned back to make their way back to camp.

When they made it back, the finishing touches on the last two longhouses were being put in place, fruit and roots were neatly collected on old jackets and pieces of fabric being used as bags, and meat was being smoked in a small rickety hut, that must have been constructed just for the moment. Clarke smiled as she saw Monty attentively writing down and illustrating each root, berry, bark and fruit, into a small journal. She was thankful that someone was clever enough to document the safe plants for future use. It would serve them well in the future, especially when it came to efficiently trading with the Grounders. It was one step towards being a self-sufficient community, and she hoped that Lexa took note of Monty's initiative.

Octavia was passing through the crowd following Indra, asking the warrior all kinds of questions that must have reminded the veteran of a child. For a girl hidden in a floorboard for her whole life, Octavia Blake was proving to be a very social person.

In the distance Clarke could see Wells and Finn, who were team-lifting large planks of wood to be stored behind the drop-ship. Now doubt it was excess lumber, and they planned on using it for future buildings. Ever resourceful, those two were. Jasper, who was still too weak to be much help with physical labor, had found purpose in boiling large quantities of water, determined to create a supply of safe drinking water.

It made Clarke feel a tremendous sense of accomplishment just looking at the rapidly growing community. So much, that for a brief moment she forgot all about the Ark, and all the electricity and technology it had. She was beginning to feel that somehow this life, with fresh air, daytime sunlight, and real meat and plants was completely worth the lack of electricity. And to top it off, a Grounder healer had actually stopped by already, the unofficial first trader of the Arker Trading Post and had donated a medium-sized amount of herbs, mysterious vials, and clean linens. Not wanting to seem like a freeloader, Miller took it upon himself to insist on making it a trade, and gave the healer a spare leather jacket (which had belonged to an Arker who passed away in the landing of the drop ship).

Not even considering their soul bond, Clarke really just wanted to drop to her knees and blubberingly express her gratitude to Lexa. All this was incredible and it just felt like the best luck in the world.

"This shouldn't take long," Clarke heard Bellamy's voice over her shoulder. She saw that he was addressing Lexa, and walked over to one of the stumps of the campfires of last night, and created a shrill whistle with his fingers against his lips. The camp quickly came to a silent halt. All eyes, Grounder and Arker, looked up at him.

"The Commander," he began, making sure his voice was heard throughout the camp, "Has given us the opportunity to select a leader. While it has been made clear that we still answer to her at the end of the day," a murmur went through the camp, "we are allowed to have a leader from our own people who will take care of us. We have also been allowed the privilege of banding a militia and having an ambassador. Both our leader and ambassador will have the privilege of leaving the five mile radius, but for business only. It is up to these individuals to communicate with the Commander, especially if we request a petition. The sooner we pick our leaders, the sooner these people get to step outside and see what more this world has to offer. I suggest we hold an election now."

Clarke was surprised by Bellamy's collectiveness, however impatient this leadership selection was going, and found herself admiring his suggestion to an election. She had actually expected him to appoint himself.

"Who do you all think should be our leader?" He asked, knowing that the group shouting these names left and right was going to be a bit difficult. He could hear Wells' name being shouted here and there, but wanted to pretend the votes weren't loud. "You really want the Chancellor's son- the man who enforces the laws that has gotten so many executed and landed you here away from home? Picking someone related to a leader is just lazy voting."

The votes for Wells began to be drowned out by people who agreed with Bellamy, and soon the eldest Blake had his name being chanted among the crowd. Clarke rolled her eyes and was about to make a statement against that when she heard her name being shouted by one lone voice, louder than the chant. It had come from Wells, who was standing beside Finn, as they emerged from their lumber pile behind the drop ship.

"Clarke should be our leader," he said, using his almost hereditary power of leadership to speak, "Without her, we all would have none of this. It's because of her that we are now lavishing in Grounder hospitality."

Whispers of agreement rippled through the crowd.

"Yeah, but Bellamy found us weapons. Without him, we wouldn't be able to defend ourselves from _rogue_ individuals," Murphy's argument came out of the crowd, placing emphasis on his choice of word so as not to offender the Grounders. It was best to choose a word that could be applied to both a Grounder and an Arker.

"Are you serious right now?" asked Octavia, who had taken steps away from Indra to get closer to Murphy. "You know this is a _trading post_ , right? We could very easily trade for weapons and weapon parts."

"Who the hell is gonna bring a spear to a gunfight, though?" Atom teased, standing by Murphy.

"It would have never been a gunfight if you guys never went looking for weapons, it would have been the same kind of weapons used against each other." Octavia snapped back. "Because these Grounders _obviously_ want to attack us after they built a whole damn town for us, showed us how to fly-fish, hunt, and forage. Because _that's_ what you do for someone you want to annihilate."

Clarke could see the hurt in Bellamy's eyes as he watched his sister actively tear apart his short-lived campaign.

"Clarke has secured us an alliance and life-sustaining trades and products," came Finn's voice. "Better a leader who provided us with something long-term than one who provided us with guns that barely have working ammunition. She was also the one who took the initiative to go look for Mount Weather, which was an attempt to find all of us shelter and supplies. Bellamy stayed put at the camp."

"I stayed to build this base camp! If Clarke had failed to find Mount Weather, which she did, this drop ship camp would have been all that we had. And it is all that we have. If Clarke hadn't…" Bellamy stopped in his words, and both Clarke and Lexa knew that he had caught himself about to disclose their soulmate status to everyone present. The two women felt tension twist inside their stomach, anticipating the reveal. "… if Clarke hadn't have been so _lucky_ , because that's all it was, to have found the Commander, we would still be trying to survive and defend ourselves from the threats that this world has. I was doing what I could to make sure we would survive if Clarke had failed."

The commotion began to grow as the crowd began to take in both sides of the argument, making it clear that there wasn't room for any other contender aside from Bellamy and Clarke. Clarke knew that Bellamy did not want to lose because that would mean answering to her, and she would do all she could to keep the way they were going. Bellamy wanted freedom from something, and Clarke still couldn't figure it out. She wanted to let him know that she would still make sure that he felt safe. Having her win didn't mean she wouldn't take care of him too, just like she would with everyone else here in the camp.

She could see him looking at her, almost sorrowfully, as the crowd began to chant her name louder, and soon the chant for Bellamy was swept up like an undertow, and all that could be heard was the name of Clarke Griffin. As she reluctantly accepted the title, she asked the word "Ambassador?" and the crowd immediately erupted with the name of the eldest Blake. It seemed that the crowd was torn on who to pick, so they ended up picking both for these most privileged positions.

Turning around from the excitement of this impromptu election, Clarke could see that the excitement had spread to Lexa, who couldn't help a sly smile from curving at her lips.

"Let's not waste any time," She said, "To Polis?"


	11. Chapter 11

Clarke didn't expect them to set out immediately, but at Lexa's behest, they all eagerly set foot on the journey to Polis. Due to a lack of horses, Lexa willingly offered her stallion to Clarke's usage. Bellamy on the other hand requested to walk, either afraid of the beasts or was too proud to be seen as incapable of foot travel. At the start of the journey, Lexa had started to happily walk beside Clarke, sharing the reins, as Clarke anxiously trotted at a safe pace. Anya and Indra weren't satisfied at the sight, and both insisted that the Commander take one of their steeds. Lexa knew it wouldn't do to share the saddle with Clarke again, like she had done when escorting her as a prisoner, but the soft spots growing in her heart wanted to continue the journey like this. She wanted to forget about everyone else besides them and share her knowledge of horseback riding with the young Skai woman. She wanted to watch Clarke's confidence trump her anxiousness, because she could already tell that Clarke had the gift to quell any self-doubt with her spiritual strength. She wanted to watch Clarke's smile grow as she began to tame the beast. It was a small moment of bonding, but the thought of spending quality alone time with Clarke made her heart feel incredibly light.

Lexa had obliged, taking Anya's horse, knowing that continuing any special attentions towards Clarke would not help her request for their soul bond to stay private. They trekked for miles on end, and when they did stop, it was to let the horses drink from streams. Bellamy would let himself collapse against a tree trunk at these moments, no doubt dying to massage his feet. Even though Clarke was riding horseback, she too was exhausted. Her thighs felt a peculiar strain, no doubt from sitting so wide for hours, and sweat began to stick to her face. The leaves decorating all the branches of every tree couldn't keep the powerful heat of the sun rays out. Clarke felt utterly disgusting. Not to mention the sweat pooling against her chest and abdomen, making her wish that she could have a moment of privacy to air out her shirt, especially to rid herself of the sweat accumulating under her breasts.

By the brink of sundown, they had decided to finally set up camp. At least five miles ago they had passed the village of Ton DC, and both Bellamy and Clarke had wondered why the Commander hadn't ordered the party to stop and rest there. The two just began to assume that Lexa wasn't one to waste time, and that the more miles they tackled today, the less they would have to do tomorrow.

Bellamy decided to tail Gustus for a bit, as the titan of a Grounder began to make a campfire. Seeing as how Bellamy had missed most of the survival lessons that morning due to the secret diplomatic meeting, he indulged his curiosity and watched the roaring fire be born.

"You look like you could use a bath," came a bold voice.

Clarke was startled by the comment, and a part of her wanted to take offense, but she knew that the sweat spoke for itself. Anya was rolling out her sleeping kit as she watched Clarke self-consciously wipe her brow of sweat.

"I'm just not used to this kind of travel," Clarke defended herself honestly. "In the Ark, the closest thing I've experienced to this was the fitness center, but then again… there wasn't a sun beating on me for hours."

"Your people are going to be extremely sensitive to everything," Anya stated, handing Clarke a piece of fabric from her satchel, "If the sun makes you weary, imagine the winter. I bet your people haven't experienced a winter in your sky home."

"True," Clarke admitted, taking the fabric. She hesitated as she held it against her forehead, waiting for Anya to nod in confirmation that she had indeed given her the cloth to clear her perspiration. "I'm not going to lie and say that we haven't been sheltered from a normal Earth environment, but to be fair, there are only so many _realistic_ privileges that the Ark could afford without crippling the systems we needed just to sustain life…" As she said these things, she could feel her father's watch sticking to her skin, and the heavy band reminded her of her father's crusade to bring the truth about the Ark's sustainability to the people. With a heavy heart, she shook the trauma from her mind and continued speaking. "But we will adapt, don't worry. It shouldn't take us more than a year to acclimate."

"I'm sure your people will."

Clarke felt ambivalent at this, wondering if the Mentor was expressing true faith or not. Sensing Clarke's hesitation, Anya chuckled and sat down on her sleep kit.

"There's a riverbank not too far from here," Anya said, pointing behind Clarke's shoulder. "Not even fifty feet straight away, and you'll start to hear it. You should take a moment to wash up, if you want. Will you need help getting there?"

"No, I should be fine, thank you." Clarke nodded, and eagerly set off for the promise of cool clean water. When she found it, she immediately began to strip out of all her main clothing, being just left to her underwear. She knelt down against the stream and plunged her hands into bed of water, gasping as she had not anticipated it to feel like it was freezing. Shaking the temperature of her mind, she cupped a large amount of the water and splashed it against her face, which elicited another gasp. It felt beyond refreshing. Dipping her hands in the stream again, she scooped up more water and splashed it against her shoulders, then down her arms, and then a large splash against her stomach, which made her tense for a brief moment. Using the cloth Anya had given her, she began to dry herself off. When she felt content with her drying, she put her bra and shirt back on, but then pulled her underwear off and knelt back by the stream. Clarke began to scoop more water from the stream and splash it against her legs and her pelvis, making sure to clean and cool her body off. Of course she would love to take a full bath, but that wouldn't be able to happen out in the wild. She would need to do that with a safer water source. Hopefully Lexa could provide one when they arrived in Polis.

Clarke felt blessed. Sure she had to keep things a secret for now, but how many people actually got to meet their soul mates? And actually got to be with them? She didn't even have to search the back of her mind to know that Lexa was being sly, and that the Commander was more than happy to take Clarke back to her home. The election couldn't have worked out any better for the two of women. Clarke faintly smiled as her imagination began to take life, filling her head with thoughts of intimacy and sweet lingering touches. In the midst of all her contemplations, she was astonished to realize that her strongest desire was simply a kiss. With the stereotypical expectations of young, passionate lovers, Clarke assumed she would feel an undeniable urge to make love, but no, her heart beat feverishly to feel her lips against Lexa's. Making her thoughts come to an end, she finished drying herself off, put the rest of her clothes back on and made her way back to the camp.

Because Lexa requested keeping their bond private, Clarke decided to stay besides Bellamy the whole night, to her own displeasure. They ate besides the Grounders at the campfire, they told a few stories here and there to pass the time, but soon they all went to sleep against the ground.

When Clarke woke up, she noticed that it was still night. The stars were piercing white against the black sky, and the moon peaked through the branches of trees. The sound of crickets in the distance was oddly entrancing, and she swore she heard an owl hoot. Sitting up, she took a look around the camp, seeing that everyone else was still sound asleep. Except for Lexa.

The Commander was wide awake, peacefully staring off into the sky as well. Clarke wondered what the young leader was thinking- if she was constantly planning ways to lead her people, or if she was taking a moment to be captivated by space. Feeling Clarke watching her, the Commander turned to meet her gaze, and smiled gently.

"Couldn't sleep either, huh?" Lexa asked kindly.

Eagerly powered by an unforeseen magnetizing force, Clarke got up from the ground and started quietly walking towards Lexa. She wanted to be closer to her, and this moment of being together while everyone was sleeping seemed like an opportune moment. Before Clarke could finish her short trek, Lexa had stood up too, and met her soulmate half way.

"It's still too risky here," Lexa whispered, "Let's go somewhere else. That museum I told you of a while ago, it's not too far from here. If you want to go, we can have some privacy there."

Clarke's heart picked up in pace, feeling excited at the implication of all the possibilities that could come from privacy.

"Of course," she replied, knowing that she wouldn't be able to resist.

Boldly, Lexa reached out her hand for Clarke, who more than happily took it. Linking their fingers together, the Commander then began to lead Clarke through the thick and dark foliage, having no trouble traveling through the dark. This was no problem to Clarke, as she was completely lost in a dreamy haze, feeling safe and content in the private company of her soulmate. Due to her daze, the time spent traveling was unknown to Clarke, and soon they found themselves at the doors of a grandiose rundown building with some old Doric columns still in place.

"The Old World had a habit of collecting all their artifacts of history and art in many of these buildings nearby. A lot of the foundations have collapsed, but this one is still mainly intact for some of the wings." Surprisingly, Lexa's authoritative demeanor was nowhere to be found, and was replaced by that of a young woman who was eager to impress a lover. She was smiling sheepishly as she held the large wooden door open for her soulmate. Clarke passed through.

Even though the building had been destroyed by the nuclear wars, the museum was still magnificent. Moonlight crept through the shattered windows, and showcased some of the artwork hanging on the walls and busts, both marble and metallic. Clarke wanted to set off and explore everything she could find, but didn't want to do a second of it without Lexa by her side. Grabbing hold of the Commander's hand, she gently escorted her lover with her.

At each piece of art she had recognized from old text books, Clarke proudly informed Lexa of, specifying oils, pastels, charcoal- Monet, Picasso, Van Gough, Dahli- Renaissance, Baroque, Colonial, abstract- she knew them all. Lexa was enthralled by her soulmate's cultured education, letting Clarke feed her mind with new knowledge of the Old World. Her favorites were the paintings with monsters, most specifically Goya's Black Paintings including "Saturn Devouring His Son". The story intrigued the Commander, haunting her intuition: the concept of someone devouring their children in order to preserve their own life… Lexa couldn't fathom such savage selfishness. As Commander, she would never dare to kill the people she had the honorable responsibility to protect just to save herself.

Soon, they exited the wing they spent a good hour spectating, they had entered a new wing full of old books, hardcover and paperback, covered in dust. Lexa let Clarke go on up ahead without her. She watched her soulmate run her index finger down the spines of multiple novels, muttering the titles hungrily, getting a little excited every time she found a title she was familiar with.

This whole experience was more pleasurable than Lexa had anticipated. They had spent the past hours nurturing each other's minds with mythologies, theories, history, and learning about each other's thought processes that the intellectual stimulation was simply arousing. Feeling spiritually fulfilled by Clarke's refreshing intelligence, Lexa caught up to Clarke and stood beside her, watching her soulmate still fumble with the novels.

"I would've killed to have all this on the Ark," Clarke said breathlessly, too excited by all the printed pages in front of her. So many worlds. So much knowledge and wisdom yet to be cracked and stored in the temple of her mind. Pulling a book from the shelf, she carefully searched the pages of the antique and delicate binding. She wanted to read to her soulmate, and give her the same pleasure she received from investing her mind in the printed words. But she didn't want to get carried away and bore Lexa, fearing she would become Sonia reading the story of Lazarus to Raskolnikov, who was so overcome by the personal significance of the story that she read with ecstasy- Dostoyevsky was a family favorite among the Griffins, and Crime and Punishment was Clarke's guilty pleasure. It provided insight to the rapid mental decline of a murderer, and the young woman had always wondered if living with blood on your hands really made people rabidly sick…

Before Clarke's vision could make sense of the words on the pages, she felt Lexa's hand gently caress her arm. Looking up from the book, she watched Lexa graze her fingers slowly against her arm yet again, a ghost of a smile on her lips, as she dreamily gazed her at own actions. Clarke softly closed the book, wanting to witness this rare moment of affection.

"Lexa?" she questioned softly, causing the woman to look up at Clarke. She could see the green and hazel blend patterned in Lexa's irises like a supernova, even in this white moonlight. The Commander did not respond with spoken language, but with instinctual human communication: touch. She ran her hand up Clarke's arm and up her shoulder, still ever so delicately, and with her other arm, wrapped it around the Skai girl's waist, and slowly pulled her against herself. With blissful consent, Clarke let herself be pressed against the Commander, subconsciously setting the book aside back on the bookshelf before placing her hands on Lexa's lower back. Feeling her eyes flutter, her entire body anticipated more of Lexa's touch, which was slowly rewarded, as Lexa's hand slid up behind Clarke's neck, unintentionally massaging the woman. With her heart practically sighing in relief, she relaxed in Lexa's hold as the Commander sweetly kissed her. Lexa's lips pressed tenderly, with care and attention to Clarke's equally affectionate reciprocation. Her greatest desire from earlier that day was being fulfilled, and Clarke relished in this first loving action with her soulmate. But the tension of desire is a powerfully escalating drug, and Clarke found herself wanting to be closer and closer to Lexa, wanting to press her body even more firmly against the older woman. She tightened the embrace between them, and knew that Lexa could feel her breasts press against her own chest. Delirious to the fever of lust, Clarke kissed Lexa confidently, paying little attention to the woman taking quick gasps of breath between kisses, and soon slipped her tongue into the surprised Commander, who pulled back from the kiss.

Too drugged from their ecstasy to be hurt by the disengagement, Clarke simply asked "What?" in regards to Lexa's stunned face.

"I don't want this to get… there... yet, Clarke," the Commander said.

"I wasn't trying to send that message, Lexa," Clarke said, "I just wanted a deeper kiss."

Lexa smirked amusedly. Clarke knew that she was just trying to be cautious, and at the same time, probably just wanted to take it slow. Just because you're destined to be with someone doesn't mean that they're obliged to go fast with you.

"I know," Lexa explained, "I just don't know if I can trust myself."

Clarke understood the implication, and truth be told, she didn't know her own limitations either. Now that she had tasted the passion of their kiss, she could only imagine the appetite of more physical affection.

"We should probably get going," Lexa continued. "We still have a long way to travel and we need some rest at least."

Nodding in understanding, Clarke slipped her hand into Lexa's once more and let herself be led out the building.


	12. Chapter 12

Clarke had never seen anything like it except for in books. Polis was grand- still recovering from the apocalyptic deterioration, but on the rise, for sure. Mankind was re-evolving, working on building large, safe, and structured communities. Crowds began to gather as they recognized the party of their commander, but as they gathered, they slowly took steps back as they watched Clarke and Bellamy enter the city limits beside Lexa and her riders. She could hear them all murmuring things about them.

Eventually they reached a massive skyscraper of a tower, which Lexa had claimed to be her residence and great hall. This is where Clarke and Bellamy would also have a room to stay in whenever they visited Polis. Once inside, Lexa had ordered servant to take both the Skai leaders away to have them prepared for a summit that would take place that evening. Since all the other ambassadors frequently stayed in Polis, all that were needed to attend were present in the city. The sooner they got introduced to the other clans, the better.

Clarke felt a bit uncomfortable at having a group of maids prepare her. She understood the importance of looking presentable for this meeting, since the week on the ground resulted in all the Arkers looking unkempt, but couldn't bring herself to let these women wash her body. Resting in the warm bath water of a bronze tub, Clarke had stopped the maid carrying the rough sea sponge to take it into her own hands. She appreciated Lexa's gesture of having people look after her, but she wasn't okay with other people cleaning her. She tried to explain her intention as politely as possible to the maid, and hastily went to cleaning herself, trying to be mindful not to use all the soap that had been given to her. Clarke wanted to remember the manners she was taught as a child: be grateful for your host's attempts at making you comfortable, but never take more than you are offered because you never really know how much of something your host has. She hoped Bellamy had the sense to use his manners, too.

When she had finished her bath, she let the maids wrap her in a towel, but courteously insisted that she would dry herself. She was handed a blue robe and was told that her clothes were being washed, and that they would be dried as soon as possible, but would take a couple of hours. It was Lexa's instructions to make sure that both Skaikru politicians would be presented to the court in Skaikru clothes so that the true understanding of Skaikru culture could be recognized. Dressing her and Bellamy like Grounders wouldn't make them distinguishable and a true representation of their people at all.

While she waited, Clarke noticed that the room she had been given had a balcony, and decided to discover the view. She was astonished to see the mosaic of shanties and partially recovered buildings spanning all around the Polis Tower, like a grand ripple effect of civilization. While her first thought was to see the capital city as run down, she rationally understood that for starting all over again and surviving the physical pain of a nuclear apocalypse, humanity was on the rise, returning slowly but surely, to its developed glory. As she watched the ant-sized people walk about the city she heard a knock at her bedroom door, and turned from the balcony to watch one of her handmaidens open it.

Lexa stood at the doorway, dressed in what Clarke could only assume was a more business-casual outfit, as her armor and ranking decorations were absent. She wore a plain and fitting long-sleeved grey shirt and complimenting dark pants, showing of the tone in her strong legs all the way down to her charmed combat boots.

"Heda!" the maid said in surprise, giving a quick bow before stepping aside to let the Commander in. Lexa smiled faintly at the servant, yet stayed at the threshold.

"May I come in, Clarke?" Lexa asked, holding her hands behind her back.

"Of course," Clarke said quickly, a little flustered that all she had on was the robe. She walked back into the room from her balcony and met the Commander halfway. The maid watched curiously. No doubt this would make for tempting gossip later in the evening.

"How are you? Is the room sufficient for your needs?"

"Absolutely," Clarke replied, truly thankful, "Are you sure it's not too much, though? I would be just fine with a smaller room."

"You are humble," Lexa said, nodding, "That is a good trait in some leaders. However, it is my custom to have all leaders given one of my best rooms. My hospitality isn't poor to those of lower stations, everyone is still taken care of, but because of your power and station, it is only customary for me to honor tradition."

"And Bellamy?"

"He is also of a high political status, therefore he was given an adequate suite as well."

Clarke watched Lexa as she spoke, noticing a lively spark in the Commander's eyes. Clarke did not have to know her soulmate long for her to know that this was simply just an excuse for Lexa to come see her. The Commander smiled slyly as she caught Clarke's investigative gaze, knowing that her soulmate had figured out her intention.

"I'm glad you are finding your stay at Polis pleasing, Clarke. After the summit tonight we will have a dinner with all the ambassadors. Your clothes should be ready in time, so do not worry."

Clarke nodded, as the Commander continued her lengthy goodbye.

"Please feel free to ask your maidens for anything, especially if you are hungry before the summit. If you'll excuse me, I have some daily errands to take care of," Lexa smiled and gave a curt bow before turning around after Clarke reciprocated her farewell, and left the room.

The Summit had arrived a lot quick than Clarke had anticipated, and could not believe that she had spent so many hours already exploring her room and the balcony view, learning so much about Polis and the Grounder culture that she could. Her clothes had been brought to her completely dry and clean, and when she looked at herself in the mirror to prepare her own hair, she felt for a second that she was back on the Ark getting ready for another day. She hadn't felt so clean in days and the sight of her outfit made her heart drop in homesickness. She looked at the metal vital monitor on her wrist with a frown, thinking about how her mother was holding up.

When she made her way down the numerous halls of the Polis tower she eventually ran into Bellamy, who was just as clean and kept as she was, and she was happy that he was putting effort into this too, despite not getting the position he wanted. He wild black hair had been washed and combed neatly, looking like a ceremony guard on the Ark. Tidiness suited the rebel. His guard jacket had been scrubbed clean, revealing the crisp black tactical build and Ark mission patch on his shoulder. Clarke was happy that he brought the jacket along because the Grounder would most definitely be able to recognize her people when the Ark came down bearing the same symbol.

The large doors of Lexa's throne room were pushed open by decorated guards, and everyone inside was peering eagerly to catch a glimpse of the newly appointed Skaikru leaders. Bellamy swallowed and stood up as straight as he could, keeping pace besides Clarke as they walked down the aisle to stand before Lexa.

The Commander was dressed in a ceremonial armor, composed of less protection and more design, accompanied by her trademark red sash. She nodded a the two.

"Ambassadors of the twelve clans, I present to you Clarke Griffin and Bellamy Blake, Skaikru's new appointed leaders of the Skaikru trading post camp. Clarke Griffin, please step forward and address the court."

Clarke nodded and took a step away from Bellamy so that the dense audience of the court and every ambassador could see her.

"Hello," she said, trying not to struggle at projecting her voice. "My name is Clarke Griffin. I have been appointed by my people to be their leader. I am the daughter of Abby Griffin, who sits at the council table of my people in the Ark. I look forward to working with your people and keeping things peaceful and prosperous between each other." As she spoke, she took in the faces of the other ambassadors, some politely taking in her words, others still standing cautiously, as if her words could harm them at any second. Finishing her greeting, she stepped back towards Bellamy, who gave her a curt nod of approval.

"Bellamy Blake," resumed Lexa's voice, "Please step forward and address the court."

Holding his arms behind his back, Bellamy stepped forward.

"Good afternoon," he began, surveying the audience. "My name is Bellamy Blake. I am Skaikru's newly appointed Ambassador. I served as a guard on the Ark. Because of my past military training, I have also been given the responsibility of being the leader of my people's militia here on Earth. The purpose of the militia is to keep my people in line and safe from anyone who does not respect the alliance we are forming today."

Clarke could feel the tension building in the room. Bellamy just had to peacock.

"I intend to do what I can to maintain peace and work as an honest messenger between Clarke, all of Skaikru, and all your people." With that, he gave another nod to the audience and stepped back to Clarke.

"The Skaikru are to be recognized as a peaceful trading post, governed by themselves on an internal level, but must answer to me, and only me. Being under my jurisdiction, no one has the authority to give orders to the Skaikru but me. In order to recruit Skaikru for hunting or scavenging trips, a request must be presented to me and then forwarded to Bellamy Blake, who will then run all correspondence with Clarke. Clarke and Bellamy are the only Skaikru allowed to leave the trading post boarders. As long as these leaders teach their people, we will not have to worry about them wandering into our villages and hunting grounds. They say that more of their people will arrive from the sky eventually, which means they will require more land. When this happens, it is up to Clarke and Bellamy to neutralize their camp and immigrants. This will allow them to petition for more land. As long as Clarke can promise that her new residents will obey our law of the land, I will permit them to grow under a larger restricted boarder. It is important that we do everything we can to maintain peace instead of resorting to extermination. It is Clarke and Bellamy's mission to accomplish this. Please send word to all your people about these new leaders to help them maintain peace between each other."

"Yes, Heda," The Ambassadors echoed.

"This diplomatic meeting is retired. Please join me for dinner in my dining hall to commemorate this new and potentially prosperous union."

They all followed each other through the throne room and down into a dining hall, where long tables had been gathered to accommodate all the guests.

Clarke and Bellamy could smell the food being cooked in a kitchen not far off, and their stomachs ached in anticipation. They had fed on the hunts of the campfire the other night of the building of the camp, but a full feast was torturous to wait for. As the guests of honor, Clarke was seated at Lexa's right hand, and Bellamy sat next to Clarke with his guard jacket draped over his chair, with Titus sitting at Lexa's left hand. The rest of the ambassadors took the remaining seats at the long table.

Servers came out of the kitchen as soon as they sensed that the dining hall had been thoroughly filled and began placing the first course in front of all that were seated.

A steaming plate of venison was placed down in front of Clarke, with a side of fried russet potatoes and greens. It took everything within the two Arkers to not tear the plate to pieces until they observed that everyone had been served. Picking up knife and fork, they cut into their meat along with everyone else on their one plate, and Clarke could have sworn she heard a grumbled "fuck" from Bellamy as he saw the juices seep out of his venison as his blade sliced through it almost like butter. When Clarke stuck a sliver of the meat on her fork and placed it on her tongue she melted at the contact of salt and spices. She and Bellamy began to devour their food like rabid animals, even relishing the taste of crisp, fresh vegetables.

"What do you eat on this Ark?" asked an Ambassador sitting across from Bellamy, next to Titus.

Bellamy raised his head from looking at his plate and chewed quickly to answer the question in a timely manner. The ambassador laughed.

"I'm Manu, ambassador of the Ice Nation."

"Bellamy Blake," Bellamy said, roughly swallowing his bite of food.

"I know," Manu laughed again.

"We, uh, because there's only so much room to farm and raise domesticated animals, most of us eat protein meals, and packets such as MREs, which the military used to eat back when everyone lived on earth. Real food like this… most people only got this luxury on holidays, and if you made it to the market in time before they sold out."

"Growing up on food that's not considered real, huh?" Maun asked, sipping his wine. "Would that make your people weak?"

"On the contrary," Bellamy said, picking up the tone of this question instantly. "MREs were used to keep soldiers strong in the field, and had all the daily nutritional necessities met. We were still fed what we needed for the human body to properly function. Most were not underfed, just fed with synthetic foods. It's our intellect that allows us to survive. With enough time and understanding of an area, we can become pretty sufficient."

Manu grimaced, and Lexa cleared her throat.

"This is not the place to measure yourselves, gentlemen," Lexa stated, swirling her wine in her cup.

"I agree," Clarke said, smiling gently at her soulmate. Lexa returned the smile courteously.

"Look at that," said another ambassador, pointing at Bellamy's arm. "It looks like someone is trying to get your attention."

Bellamy looked down at his arm and watched a drawing of Poseidon's trident seep into his skin. Bellamy blushed, to Clarke's surprise, and put his guard jacket back on.

"The quest for your soulmate," Manu said, almost as if he was reminecing. "Getting any closer to figuring out who they are?"

"I'm not sure yet," Bellamy answered, clearing his throat. "I'm not ready to meet them yet if meeting is possible between us."

"Why the trident?"

"They know I like mythology," Bellamy answered, "I get a couple symbols every now and then. A centaur, Pegasus… I think I got medusa once."

"And what about you, Clarke kom Skaikru? How goes your fated search?" Manu asked with a smile.

Clarke could hear Lexa inhale deeply as the question was asked, no doubt taken by surprise and anxious. To ease Lexa, Clarke slyly reached her foot over to Lexa's calf muscle under the table, and began to rub softly and slowly.

Smiling, the leader of Skaikru responded "I think I'm pretty close. Just have a few things to handle first."


	13. Chapter 13

Doctor Abby Griffin slept and took her meals in the monitor room ever since the dropship left the Ark. Personally tied to the importance of this mission, she oversaw everything, using all the knowledge she had to explain the vital readings of all the delinquents sent to earth. However, despite her medical readings, there was still the problem of communicating with the Arkers. In order to overcome this obstacle, she had recruited the help of a mechanic prodigy by the name of Raven Reyes. Together, the team of women worked long hours day and night to patch the bridge between Earth and the Sky.

The doctor looked at the digital clock on the wall. It was noon, which meant that Chancellor Jaha and Marcus Kane would be making their way to the monitor room, expecting their morning status report.

"How are those comms coming along, Raven?" Abby asked with a tired sigh.

"Same as yesterday, doc," Raven replied, her lively charisma translating blandly as the young mechanic hated failure. "Scanning all the frequencies that I can pick up, but I'm pretty sure that dropship's radio is fried."

The bay doors of the monitor room hissed open as Jaha and Kane walked through.

"Chancellor on deck!" someone in the room shouted.

Everyone paused their activity to respect their leader as he approached Abby at her desk that was close to the hundreds of mini monitors against the wall.

"How were the last twenty-four hours, Abby?" Jaha asked, his hand gently resting on the medical gauze wrapped around his abdomen.

"Steady, like your recovery, I hope," the doctor responded nodding at his healing wounds.

"As steady as my stubbornness will allow," Jaha replied with routine humor.

Abby nodded, indicating the end of pleasantries. "I still believe that the delinquents are surviving as a mass group, as all their vitals typically synchronize during the same moments of the day. As you may remember, I started to assume that they were splitting off, as that first day resulted in a peak heart-rate from a small handful of them, including my daughter and your son."

"What do you believe is the cause of them?"

The doctor shrugged, "Perhaps our children were selected or volunteered to explore or hunt on behalf of the group. Jasper Jordan's vitals nearly flatlined in an instant, and at the same time, our children and the others in their supposed group peaked, perhaps out of fear. I want to assume that they left together, Jasper got injured somehow, and it scared the others. Since his vitals have been returning back to average levels, I believe he has recovered from whatever happened."

"And your evidence to support that the rest of the delinquents are working as a group as well?"

"A couple days ago all their vitals were increased, but almost as if through exercise. The levels they raised to do not indicate a physical reaction to any radioactive elements."

"You mean to tell me that their vitals rose, and you believe they were exercising?" Kane inquired.

"I'm not saying that, I'm saying that their vitals reached a level that's typical for some kind of physical labor, not a dangerous reaction to the atmosphere that a non-survivable planet would cause. Their vitals collectively increase, but to a healthy level." Abby phrased, trying to make herself as understandable as possible.

"Anything else to report?"

The doctor hesitated. There was something she wanted to investigate, but it was just for personal satisfaction. "Clarke's vitals. They're bizarre. After Jasper's drop, Clarke's relaxed within a few minutes of the frenzy that the rest of the small group had. I believe she may have passed out. But when her vitals began to climb again, it was almost as if in anxiety or fear. Hers lasted the longest while everyone began to relax within an hour or so. And then to top it off, I believe she is either adapting better or getting better food than the rest. Last night and this morning, her vitals were in great shape. All her levels were where they needed to be- almost as if she was healthy and back on the Ark again. I do not understand why she's doing a lot better than the others."

"That is peculiar," Jaha agreed, and Abby was relieved that the Chancellor wasn't going to assume that Clarke was hoarding better food and water, which he still might have been thinking.

"How about the communications?" Kane asked, changing the subject and looking at Raven.

"Like I told the doctor," Raven sighed, "Radio silent still. No frequencies coming from Earth. At least none that are strong enough." As she said this, she turned a dial by millimeters, it seemed, carefully scanning every frequency that could be picked up. "I think it's safe to say that Earth is okay, even if we can't get verbal confirmation."

"… Ark…" the radio hiccupped a word through the static and everyone froze.

Raven leaned closer to her radio panel and began to slowly turn the dial back and forth over the notch the dial's pointer crossed when the word came through.

"The…" the frequeny stuttered again.

"This is impossible," Raven said, but her growing smile proved more interest than disbelief. She pulled the microphone attached to her radio panel closer to her. "This is Ark Station. Please repeat your call. Over."

All the personelle in the classified room leaned closer to Raven's desk, anticipating the response.

"Ark…" The radio croaked again, "Hundred… Over."

Abby's face beamed with excitement, not needing a clearer message to figure out the truth.

"Can you clear it up?" Kane wondered.

"That's not much else I can do from up here. It's up to whoever it is on the other side to patch up their signal." Raven replied.

"Ark Station… Ark Station…"

"There we go," Raven muttered, "It's almost like he heard me." She pulled the microphone a little bit closer to her lips this time, and spoke clear, loud, and steady: "This is Raven Reyes of the Ark Station. Please state your name. Over."

The radio crackled for a few seconds before the response came through, "Monty Green. Over."

"He's on the list," Abby confirmed without even having to look at her monitors.

"It's nice to hear from you, Monty. Are you part of the hundred sent to Earth on the dropship?" Raven continued.

"Yes…" the static voice replied. "We are alive and well…"

The room let out a collective quiet celebration, before Jaha reached his hand out to order everyone to remain quiet once more.

"Monty, this is Chancellor Jaha," he said, taking the microphone from Raven. "We need you to give us a status report. Is earth survivable?"

"Yes… it's like… just like the books. It's beautiful… it's safe."

"Have you set up camp?"

"Yes. More than …camp. Settlement."

"Can you clear up your frequency? You're breaking up a bit."

"We have houses…" Monty's voice came in clearer, after seconds of radio silence. "We've built homes."

"How exactly did you do that?"

"The Grounders. They're real. They helped us."

Jaha looked around at his inner circle, each and every one of them displaying the same look of confusion.

"Monty, what do you mean?" Abby asked loudly, hoping her voice would make it to the microphone Jaha controlled.

"Clarke found them."

Abby's heart surged.

"She found these Grounders?"

"Yes. They survived the nuclear apocalypse and built societies. They attacked Jasper by mistake during a hunting trip. Clarke spoke to their leader to get him back. She secured an alliance."

"Your daughter's quite the diplomat, it seems," Jaha mentioned to Abby. "It also seems that you may have been right about Jasper being injured during a hunt." Turning back to the microphone, he asked, "Have you secured Mount Weather? Is this where you are reporting from?"

"Negative… Mount Weather is reportedly inhabited already by a group of people the Grounders call the Mountain Men. We failed to even get close to the compound."

"Monty, how did Clarke secure this alliance?" Abby asked, returning to the only part she was interested in. She loved hearing word about her daughter, especially since their devastating family rift.

"Well it depends on how you see it…" Monty's voice said vaguely. "Clarke got us an alliance by promising to stick to our grounds. This land is owned by the Grounders, and thanks to Clarke, their leader is going to let us live within a five-mile radius of our dropship. We are to not expand from here until the Grounders deem us safe."

"They believe you're a threat?" Jaha asked.

"They're being cautious. They don't know what we're capable of, but it seems they're giving us a chance at peace first. Clarke got them to accept our camp as a trading post."

"So Grounders will be constantly interacting with you, but you cannot leave the radius?"

"Correct."

"What are they like?"

"Scary to look at, at first. But they're good people. Incredibly helpful. They seem genuine. I mean, they helped us build the camp, and they're constantly visiting to trade new things. I think they're excited to see new people."

"Monty, can I speak to Clarke?" Abby asked, hopeful.

"She's not here," Monty replied, "She's off visiting the Grounders at their capitol with Bellamy."

The room grew quieter than it already was.

"So he's on Earth…" Jaha whispered, his hand subconsciously traveling to the bandaged wound on his abdomen.

"What role does Bellamy play in Clarke's trip to the Grounders?" Abby asked, trying not to let the tension ruin this first bit of communication.

"The Grounders' Commander told us to select a leader and ambassador. Clarke and Bellamy were elected, with Clarke being our leader. They're the only ones allowed to leave the camp and communicate with the Grounder Commander. They'll be back as soon as they're done meeting the other ambassadors of the twelve clans."

Kane and Jaha's face grew dim as they realized the countless numbers these Grounder communities might have, feeling more insecure about this mission to Earth.

"Monty would you say your radio is fully functional now? Can we contact you whenever?" Jaha asked.

"I believe so, but I can't say if anyone will be here to answer it at any second of the day."

"We will call you back in two hours, we must conference. Is this okay?" Jaha began.

"Yeah, sure. When will you join us on Earth, though?"

"We'll decide that in the conference. We must end our conversation now, Monty. Thank you for working so hard to communicate with us. Your effort will be rewarded."

"Thank you- I mean, you're welcome."

"Goodbye, Monty."

"Goodbye".

Clarke felt radiant. Sure she wasn't happy about having to leave Polis, but everything about the past twenty-four hours had left the woman feeling supercharged and serene. She had a full body bath, her hair was clean, her clothes were fresh, she had full hot meals made of real food and spices, she had cold fresh water- and not to forget, the red wine and kisses she enjoyed when sneaking off to say goodnight to Lexa.

Even Bellamy had seemed to behave lighter, a true smile faintly decorated his lips as he quickly learned how to communicate with his horse. He rode ahead of Clarke at an exhilarating trot, and Clarke watched contently, pleased that they could at least travel back to the camp without arguing with each other. Lexa was concerned about the two riding alone, but both Bellamy and Clarke had insisted that they learn the way to and fro themselves, especially since they were allowed to be outside the camp, if they got lost, they wouldn't be in any danger in asking for someone's help along the way.

It seemed to have taken a lot quicker to return to camp than it was to arrive, but then again Clarke remembered that they had left in the afternoon the day the departed for Polis, but today they left at dawn after an early breakfast. It had to have been at least a total of seven hours, and they had made it back to the dropship at least an hour after noontime.

They were greeted by a commotion in the camp, and the two leaders were surprised to see that the trading post had changed so much in so little time, with stalls stationed here and there with different purposes: one for water, one for clothes, one for foraging. Everything was handled ultimately in the trading post in the drop ship after being verified good to be traded.

Dismounting from their horses, courtesy of Heda Lexa, Clarke and Bellamy passed through the crowd to the dropship, where the majority of the commotion was clustered.

"What's going on?" Clarke asked curiously.

Monty was at the threshold of the dropship trying to call the crowd, and when he saw Clarke and Bellamy, he beckoned them towards him.

"I got in contact with the Ark!"

Bellamy froze in place, catching Clarke's curiosity.

"What's wrong?" She asked.

"N-nothing," Bellamy said, clearing his throat as he continued to walk up the ramp with Clarke.

"What did they say?" Clarke resumed, speaking to Monty.

"Not much, actually. They were more interested in what I had to say. They're holding a conference and will get back to me in about an hour."

"We have to tell Lexa," Clarke said, immediately turning to Bellamy.

"You want to leave after we just got back?" Bellamy questioned.

"She wants to be here to represent her people, she doesn't want the Ark to make any assumptions about them," Clarke informed. "Bellamy, you must go back. I have to stay and be there for the conference and do all I can to keep the Ark and the Council from seeing the situation in the wrong light until Lexa gets here. Please."

Bellamy furrowed his eyebrows in agitation, clearly not interested in another seven hour ride, but a part of him wanted to get away from the situation at hand. If the Ark was now communicating with the dropship, eventually they would start asking for him… they knew he didn't belong with the hundred, and they would still be on the hunt for him, especially after his attempt to murder the Chancellor.

At this moment, Bellamy's riflemen rounded up by him like the loyal pack they were. Instead of greeting them, he immediately went to giving them orders, telling them to keep things in line while he would be gone for another day. Placing Murphy in charge who had just given him a fresh canteen, Bellamy gave Clarke a worrisome look before mounting on his horse again and charged out.

"He might be right to fear the Ark, you know," Murphy muttered to Clarke as they both watched him gallop away into the tree-line. "You may have your mother on the inside, but that didn't stop you from getting arrested, and it's probably not gonna stop them from re-arresting us. That's what Bellamy says is most likely going to happen."

"They sent us here with the reward of a pardon if we succeed, and we have succeeded."

Murphy scoffed in disgust, "Have we? You may have proved that Earth is inhabitable, but you've put us in the hands of someone else's power. You've basically committed treason all over again. You've lost your privilege and status, I hope you know that, princess. You're one of us now, and you'll always be."

"Have some faith," Clarke sighed.

Murphy couldn't hold back his chuckle. "I almost feel bad for you, Clarke. All that faith put into the wrong people." With that, he rolled up his jacket sleeves before shouldering his rifle once more, and headed out to join his minute militia, with the residual outline of a small Poseidon's trident faint on his arm.


	14. Chapter 14

Bellamy struggled with his conscious on this mission. As he darted through the woods on his steed, his mind weighed his options: alert Lexa of the Ark's correspondence or not. If he told Lexa, there was a possibility that Lexa would protect him from the Council. His fear was building so much of the consequences of shooting Jaha back on the Ark that his pride almost seemed willing to surrender to be under Lexa's wing. Ultimately, he did not want to have to answer to anybody. He felt if the Dropship had just been left alone, his conscious finally would have relaxed, but now he felt like he was being surrounded by authority. All Bellamy ever wanted was to be a free man.

It had to be at least dusk by now, as he could see the sun setting through the trees. He came to a halt to let his horse desperately drink up a river, while he sat against a tree trunk contemplating his moves. While he hated having to answer to anyone, his instincts of self-preservation told him that Lexa was his best choice. After all, the woman had granted him a position of power instead of bringing a fight. The Ark would not accept him, even if he was involved with Clarke's political success. He would be executed, not doubt about it. In the gears of his mind, he began to fabricate a story to confess to Lexa, about how much the Ark was a threat to the Hundred, and most importantly, to Clarke. He knew the best way to sell his story was to include Clarke- Lexa wouldn't be able to resist wanting to protect her new-found soulmate. But the best lies are the ones that hold grains of truth, and the best he could do to convince the Commander was to confess their criminal past.

He would tell the Commander that they were all essentially misdemeanor offenders, nothing too serious, but that the Ark, with their unforgiving nature, had sent them on this believed-to-be suicide mission to clear their records, but that they would no longer be in control of the trading post once the rest arrived. He would plead the Commander in privacy to offer protection to the Hundred, to claim ownership of their souls- a coup. He would find a way to encourage the Commander to swing in right before the Council tried to take control. To eradicate the Council's power.

Sighing to himself as he shifted these possible ideas around in his mind, he rolled up his sleeve and pulled out the marker he kept in the inside pockets of his guard jacket. He was tired of symbols now, he needed condolences. He needed an opinion he felt he could trust.

 _Do you trust the Grounders?_ He wrote, hoping that his soulmate was on Earth as he suspected. His nights full of bizarre dreams gave him no other belief than that he was experiencing proximity soulmate dreams.

It didn't take long for a response as his soul mate bleed back: _More than the Ark._

Bellamy smiled faintly, using these responses to help him make a decision.

 _Wolves in sheep's clothing though?_ His soulmate continued to pen.

Bellamy had obviously considered this himself from the start, thanks to his paranoid nature.

 _Devil you do or the devil you don't?_ he wrote back. He had often heard the saying before, translating to the thought if it was better to undergo what you know one party is capable of instead of putting your fate in the hands of someone new.

 _Devil you don't._

The conversation was taking too much space, so they moved to the other arm to write, resulting in sloppy penmanship from using their non-dominate hands (which gave Bellamy a genuine chuckle).

 _Being given a real chance to start over or believing an obvious lie?_

Bellamy knew which option was related to each party. His soulmate was right. Sure he would have to end up answering to another government- he would never get the life of having no one to answer to and obey- but Lexa had done more than enough for him to put aside his distrust for now. Besides, Clarke was his leverage. Lexa really wouldn't do anything against them as long as Clarke was involved and being treated well.

 _A real chance,_ Bellamy finally responded. Feeling a significant amount of weight lift from his shoulders he made his decision. He would tell Lexa the truth… kind of. Clarke was in danger, and if Lexa ever wanted to see her again, she would have to destroy the Council.

She stood in the middle of the arena, and her mind screamed. She knew what this was. She'd never be free of its memory. Ever. Trapped in this dream for all eternity.

Unsheathing her sword, the metal scrapping the scabbard echoed through the open arena. No one was watching. The seats were empty. But all the novitiates stood ready, all watching her. Turning away simultaneously, knowingly, they broke into open combat against each other. Spears, short swords, shields, war hammers- it all rang in her ears and pounded in her heart. The panic set in, as it always did every time this memory assaulted her sleep.

She heard the battle cries, the frantic gurgling of blood, the surprised and fearful gasps of life escaping bodies as metal punctured and ruptured flesh, some of her doing, some from others. She was surrounded by corpses and escaping souls. She saw the pure bloodlust and aggression in the eyes of her combatants, who she had always seen as loving and caring. War brought out the beast in everyone who desired to be victors. That's what the 12 Clans needed, beasts for leaders. Instinctually, Lexa raised her sword above her head and caught the neck of a Warhammer for a split second before her blade shattered to pieces. The shard of metal cutting her and her opponent's face. The hammer thudded into the ground with strength that could have caused an earthquake, the future commander falling aside. As quickly as she could, she scurried to a corpse- Leonie, a good friend she had grown up with- and picked up the dead woman's spear. Getting to her feet, she turned to face the man who had just weeded his hammer from the dirt ground, and stared at her straight in the eyes.

He lifted his hammer above his head, thanks to the strength of his enormous shoulders, and brought it down over Lexa, who stumbled out of the way. She could feel her legs trembling; she was so close to victory. No one was left, just her and this man. She could hear him huffing, his strength failing him as he exhausted it with all the swings of his heavy weapon. The sound of an excited and anxious crowd reverberated in the arena, yet the seats were still empty.

Her opponent, the commander-hopeful, lifted his hammer one more time, growling with all his might, and swung. In slow motion it seemed, Lexa too raised her arm, lifting the spear. Placing both hands on the staff of her spear, she lunged as much force as she could, and as the steel block of the hammer crushed her ribs, sending a sharp cry in the sky, the tip of her spear punched right through the man's throat and up his neck, cracking open on the other side of his skull. She felt her body get pushed to the ground first, his body collapsing on hers. The pain in her side was unbelievable, her ribs had to be broken for sure. Shattered into crystal fragments.

She opened her mouth to let out feeble cries of pain, trying to roll the dead man off of her. She had won, but she felt like she was dying herself. Weakly, she placed a hand over her left ribcage and brought herself to one knee. It was all she could muster in that moment. She could barely breath without pinching her lungs. She looked up at the empty arena, the sounds of applause ringing in her ear.

 _Heda!_ She heard the crowd chant. The greatest triumph and station of her life had been won, by killing her own people. She was granted the honor of protecting her people by killing her people…

"Heda!"

Lexa shook up from her desk, alerted back into her waking life. She was sweating from the intense dream.

"Heda!" came the exclamation again. The person had been knocking at the door.

"Come in," Lexa said, clearing her throat.

The door opened and Anya walked through with Bellamy Blake behind her.

Lexa raised her eyebrow in genuine curiosity. "Bellamy?" Turning to Anya, she asked "What time is it?"

"Nine at night," Anya replied.

"Why are you back, Ambassador?"

Bellamy seemed uneasy, and looked at Anya before looking back at Lexa.

"Can we speak in private, please?" he asked.

Lexa took a deep breath, preparing herself for where this conversation might lead. "Of course, Anya, please leave us. I will call if I need you."

Anya nodded obediently and closed the door behind her, but was obviously cautious of the Skai boy's quick return to Polis.

"How is the horse I lent you?" Lexa asked, wondering how the beast was faring after literally traveling all day.

"Exhausted," Bellamy said honestly. "I am hoping to spend the night so it can rest."

"Of course," Lexa said courteously. "Please, sit," she said, as she realized that she was still seated at her desk herself. Bellamy took the chair opposite of her desk and the looked at each other face to face. "Why have you come back?"

"The Ark has communicated with us."

Lexa's face fell.

"It happened on our way back to the camp this morning, so one of ours, Monty Green, had to explain the situation here on Earth back to our people. I know you wanted to be the first to do so, but this was nothing Clarke and I could control since we had no idea they got the radio working. Once we found out, Clarke sent me to notify you. During my travels she was scheduled to talk to the Ark. She said she would do her best to represent you."

"Why didn't she let me know?" Lexa asked, obviously implying about their soul bond.

"Clarke knew that if you just all of a sudden knew about the radio without one of us to tell you, your people would suspect, so we had to follow your protocol, even if we did lose time."

Lexa nodded understandably.

"You can come with me tomorrow back to the camp if you want to represent yourself the next time we contact the Ark."

Lexa leaned back in her chair, thinking about this. The Ark was already building a reputation of her people without being represented by a Grounder. She only hoped that Clarke did truly represent her and her people correctly.

"I do not know how the Ark feels about you taking control of us. They will most likely try to negotiate your relinquishing control when they arrive."

"What are you getting to, Bellamy?" Lexa asked, too seasoned in politics to know this was more than just a status report.

"Clarke and I haven't been completely honest with you."

"Meaning?" Lexa urged, feeling her stomach start to twist.

"We're criminals to the Ark. All one hundred of us. When the Ark arrives, they will re-arrest us all."

"What?" Lexa inquired, "That does not make sense. Why would a government let criminals free like this?"

"The Ark probably thought we wouldn't survive. It was a win-win situation of sorts for them. If we proved Earth was survivable, then the Ark population could live on Earth. If the Earth wasn't survivable, at least they would reserve more life-sustaining resources for everyone else until they found another solution to keep our people alive. But make no mistake, when they come, they will take down everything we have established today, unless you take total control of the camp."

"Funny how you are asking me to take total control when not too long ago you were dying for as much freedom as possible," Lexa said, leaning back in her chair.

"That was before I knew they succeeded in fixing the radio. I thought we were going to have a chance to be free."

Bellamy could see the Commander slightly flex her jaw as she pondered his information. After a brief moment of silence, she asked, "What was Clarke's crime?"

"We're all mostly misdemeanors," Bellamy answered, "We're not dangerous people, it's just that the Ark has grown used to no mercy."

"Bellamy," Lexa said, almost glaringly.

Bellamy sighed, "Treason."

Lexa exhaled deeply, the heavy crime resting on her mind. "Treason?"

"In the government's eyes," Bellamy continued, trying to find a way to soften the charge. "She released government information to the public. Information they deserved to hear. She wanted us all to know the truth about how the government was planning on keeping certain things a secret. When Council found out our home was dying, they wanted to keep it a secret. Because Clarke's parents had ties to the council, naturally the whole Griffin family knew. Clarke and her father did not want to keep things a secret, and told everyone the truth. For that her father was executed, and Clarke was on death row, in solitary confinement, awaiting her eighteenth birthday. The Ark does not execute minors, they wait for them to be of legal adult age."

Bellamy watched this all unfold on Lexa's face. The Commander was troubled.

"When the Ark arrives, they will kill Clarke."

"Why wouldn't Clarke tell me this?" Lexa asked, her voice rising.

"She has too much faith," Bellamy continued, "She believes that since her mother is on the council that she will be pardoned. The Ark will redo politics and lock us all away. Please help."


	15. Chapter 15

Lexa set out once again on the tiresome road back to the Ark Trading Post, with Bellamy Blake trotting next to her. As happy as she was to have found her soulmate, a privilege not many experienced, she was prone to road weariness, and secretly wished that she had at least gotten a whole day of rest before having to come right back on the seven or so hour journey. She had taken her typical three riders with her, Gustus, Indra, and Anya, who also must have been exhausted of the constant trips.

It was three in the afternoon when they had arrived, and everyone was excited to see the Commander in the camp so soon. The Grounder traders, who were doing their part in keeping their Heda's newest project alive flocked over to share brief praises to her. She thanked them for their words like any grateful leader would, but made sure to ask for the Skai Leader.

They ushered her to the dropship. Right when she was about to pass through the shrouded doorway, she realized that Bellamy was nowhere to be found. Relieving her guards of their watch, she ordered them to rest by the doorway.

"Clarke?" she asked, stepping inside, intrigued by the interior of the ship. It resembled that of a metal home, and Lexa wondered if the Mountain Men lived in a similar way.

There was a quick rustling in a hatch above her, and down the ladder came her soulmate. The blonde woman smiled genuinely, reaching out to embrace Lexa in a warm hug.

"I'm so glad you came," she said, "but you've missed two radio correspondences."

"I traveled as fast as I could," Lexa said, "it is quite a journey, I'm sure you remember."

"Yes, of course." Clarke nodded, and delicately reached out for Lexa's hand. "Are we alone?" she asked before entwining their fingers together.

Lexa's heart pounded furiously in her chest. "Yes, we are. But my riders are just outside."

"I'm afraid the Ark is suspicious of you," Clarke began. "I did what I could to remind them that you are good, but all signs point to the thought that you are not going to let them lead us at all in the long run."

Lexa was prepared for this, on account of Bellamy. She reached out to tuck a soft strand of blonde hair behind Clarke's ear. "Any leader would not be pleased to hear that their people are taking orders from someone else. I will do my best to reassure them of my motives when I speak to them, but Clarke, you must also remember that I have my own people to protect to. I can only give your Council so much power without giving them the power to hurt my people."

Clarke nodded once more, understanding everything. "Will you be staying the night?" she asked, changing the subject. Her voice was always so delicate when she wasn't around other people, and it appeased Lexa.

"I would like to," the Commander said, "but there is something I must discuss with you."

"Of course, what is it?"

"When Bellamy came into my office to notify me of the radio, he spoke about your people's relationship to your government," Lexa began. Clarke's lips pursed for a second, obviously not expecting this. "He said that everyone here in this camp is a criminal to your government, is this true?"

"It is," Clarke responded truthfully, yet uneasy. "But in all fairness, our crimes would not seem like such if you reviewed the testimonies and charges. Some of the people here were arrested for stealing medicine to save their families, or food to save a child. Some were arrested for failing to keep up with citizen paperwork, and some were arrested for young dumb jokes. Octavia is here just for simply being a sibling. We have population control on the Ark that forbids more than one child per family. We're not criminals because we're evil or dangerous or lack moral grounds, we're criminals for things that shouldn't be crimes."

Lexa listened to Clarke's lengthy defense, but continued her questions to get the clarification she sought. "But you?" she asked, "Bellamy told me you were going to be executed for committing treason."

"Not against my people. Treason for exposing the government's horrific agenda." Clarke's body language was stiff, and she had let go of Lexa's hand. "The government wasn't going to tell us that we were going to die because the life support systems were failing. Why is it that a government abandoning its people doesn't count as treason? My 'treason' was doing what my government should have done themselves."

"Law is interpreted and exercised by the ruler, and no one else," Lexa stepped forward, trying to remain neutral to Clarke, wanting to avoid upsetting the young woman further. "I am not asking to judge you, Clarke…"

"I didn't want you to know. I didn't want any of your people to know." Clarke explained, not moving when Lexa placed her hands on her shoulders.

"Clarke," Lexa whispered, touching their foreheads together gently. "I am not ashamed of your past. We've both done things for the good of our people. I still accept you as my soulmate. I simply ask because I am worried for you. What will your people do to you when they arrive?"

"They have promised to pardon us after processing," Clarke answered, eyes closed, enjoying the closeness.

"Do you believe them?"

"Yes."

"Are you sure?"

Clarke pulled herself away from Lexa, raising her eyebrow. "You're starting to sound like Bellamy."

"His paranoia may be right this time."

Clarke sighed and turned away from Lexa.

"Clarke," Lexa tried to keep a soothing tone. "If your government so easily condemns people to death, why would they easily forgive? Even if you have undergone atonement. I just want you to be safe. I do not want them putting you back in prison, or worse. I want to keep you safe and out of their grasp."

"And how do you plan on doing that?" Clarke asked, still facing away.

"Maybe I'll just take you home with me," Lexa said, pressing herself into Clarke's back in a comforting embrace.

"Oh yeah?" Clarke asked, a smile forming on her lips. "I don't know how they'll feel about you just stealing me away like that."

"They are going to have to accept it. I will not lose you, Clarke." Lexa's words had started out playful, yet they ended on a somber and real note.

Clarke relaxed in Lexa's arms for a moment longer, enjoying the silence that was mingled with their breathing, before suggesting they contact the Ark.

"They call every day at noon, but they did tell me to contact them when you arrived. Would you like the opportunity to speak to them?" Clarke asked.

Lexa let go of Clarke and straightened up. "Of course, I will gauge them from here. Please, contact them."

Clarke nodded and walked over to the radio, turned on a dial, and reached for the handle.

"Hundred to Ark Station, this is Clarke Griffin, over."

There was static response for about forty seconds before there was a reply.

"Ark Station, reading you loud and clear. What is the purpose of your call?"

Lexa kept a cool composure, but underneath it all she was intrigued by this machine.

"I have Commander Lexa here, on behalf of the Grounders, to speak to the Council."

Silence once again. "Standby, Griffin." Said the operator.

"This is Chancellor Jaha speaking," came a new voice on the radio after a few minutes of standby. "With me are a few members of the council, Marcus Kane and Abby Griffin. With whom am I speaking to?"

"Clarke Griffin and Commander Lexa," Clarke replied.

"Pleased to make your acquaintance, Commander Lexa," said Jaha, "I look forward to our meeting on Earth. First off I would like to thank you for taking care of my people the way you have. It was more than charitable."

"The pleasure is all mine," Lexa replied. Clarke could only imagine how the sound of a Grounder's voice impacted those listening on the Ark. She wondered if they were ignorant enough to believe that Lexa would be a savage with a base understanding of English, only to be taken by surprise at the Commander's educated etiquette.

"Before we get any further in getting to know each other, Commander, I would like to discuss the incident involving Jasper Jordan, a young man who was injured by one of your people."

"A small company and I went out hunting the day the young man was injured. One of my riders was obviously looking for game. Startled by the appearance of this loud group of individuals, who we had no idea were even here, he re-flexed and took his spear to Jasper. My hunter obviously recognized his mistake immediately and brought the injured boy to me, who we brought back to health."

"And if I remember Clarke's story, you had run into Clarke during this time?"

"Clarke was party of Jasper's party, yes, and had run into my band during the panic of the incident. She passed out at the sight of us, so we took her in too."

Clarke smirked at Lexa's attempt to clean up the fact that Clarke had actually been taken hostage and interrogated.

"Here you discussed the camp with her, is that correct?"

"Yes, I could recognize that she, and the others in her group, were simply inexperienced youths, and that there was no harm in them. I decided to help them, in order to maintain peace between my people and yours. I did not want them wandering into certain territories and accidentally committing crimes or acts of war. It was for the best of everyone involved."

Clarke operated the radio as she watched her soulmate deliver her agenda and motives as professionally as possible to the Ark, making the blonde proud of Lexa's composure. It attracted her more to see the leadership Lexa embodied in just her words. She handled herself well, even when explaining adamantly about the petition process, and how she will not relinquish total control to the Council until she knew that the Ark was not a threat to her people. This was going surprisingly well to Clarke's untrained political eye.

And then it was announced: the Ark would land within a week, hopefully within the five mile radius. However, diplomacy would be discussed immediately. Lexa agreed and soon they signed off.

"Did you not wish to speak to your mother?" Lexa asked. "She was present over the radio."

Clarke shrugged nonchalantly. "I wanted to keep things strictly political," she lied, not wanting to tell Lexa of her fragile family. Not yet anyway.

A kiss was placed on Clarke's neck, to the blonde's surprise, as Lexa wrapped her arms around her from behind, enjoying this particular embrace.

"Does it bother you that I touch you?" Lexa murmured, placing another careful kiss on Clarke's nape.

"No," Clarke responded dreamily. "Why would it?"

"Our romance is young," Lexa replied simply, "I can't help but touch you, but I also can't help but feel that I don't deserve such intimacy just yet." Clarke could feel a rise in heat against her neck, recognizing this as the Commander blushing strongly at the statement.

"You feel we're moving too fast?" Clarke asked, bewildered and amused.

Lexa murmured in the affirmative, placing another anxious kiss on Clarke's now-exposed shoulder, since the Commander had moved the collar of the girl's shirt aside.

"We don't have to be too physical before you're ready, there is no rush, really," Clarke admitted, her heart losing control at the simple intimacy of Lexa's kisses.

"Yes there is," Lexa said, her hands traveling down Clarke's ribs to rest on her hips. "I could lose you soon. I have you and I want you,"

This time it was Clarke who blushed violently. She wasn't a stranger to physical love, but the anticipation of finding a soulmate caused a lot of emotional build-up, and Clarke felt like a novice to romance all over again. Lexa had an effect on her that she could not overcome.

Letting her own words resonate in her mind, Lexa found herself wanting to correct her words, "Not… not _that._ I meant just simply being with you, in general." The Commander cleared her throat and removed herself from embracing Clarke, who in turn turned around to face her soulmate. "I would love to experience love making with you, of course… I just, I really do not know how to express myself, I'm sorry. I'm confusing you."

Clarke was too enamored to be bothered by Lexa's blundering however, and just watched with a rosy smile.

"Lexa, we're meant to be together, but that does not mean that we should force ourselves to be together. I have no problem with waiting until it feels more natural for us. But that doesn't mean you should stop touching me. Express your intimacy as much as you want, please. I would want nothing more than to do the same," Clarke closed the space between them, her breasts pressing into Lexa's own chest as she wrapped her arms around Lexa's neck. "Drive me crazy with your touches and feelings, please, that will be enough pleasure for now, trust me." Clarke said these words so gently, yet seductively, causing Lexa to forget about the entire world and let herself become emotionally enticed by Clarke's invitation of love.

Overcome, Lexa took Clarke's lips with her own, in a passionate kiss that invigorated Clarke's heart. They parted their lips occasionally to become acquainted with each other's tongues, they breathed in each other's scent when it came time to gasp for breath, hands tangled in hair. For that moment, they were lovers removed from the world, lost in their destiny: to love each other with the entirety of their souls.


	16. Chapter 16

Abby Griffin had spent the majority of her supervision obsessing over Clarke's vitals. It surprised her that out of all the hundred inmates on her board, her vitals were the best. She would witness flutters in heart rates every now and then, and wondered what could be the cause. She often brushed it aside, associating it to young people just being… young and irresponsible. Clarke was on the verge of adulthood, it was no longer Abby's place to have a say in her daughter's growth. Today however, she had to be separated from the survey room and assigned to one of the many operating dropships to prepare for land. Being connected to the council, she was a priority on the list of travels to Earth. After numerous culling incidents and people causing rackets and riots, the Ark population had dropped 20%. There was now conveniently enough room for everyone on the dropships, where extra makeshift seats were added for maximum capacity. While the doctor was nervous about the journey, she was more concerned about seeing Clarke again for the first time since her imprisonment. She wondered if things would be okay between them. As the dropships set their courses for the vicinity of the delinquents, they finally separated from the Ark, and when they passed through the atmosphere of Earth, the turbulence was too much for Abby to handle, and she slipped into unconsciousness.

On Earth, all the delinquent population was ambivalent, not knowing whether they should be excited for their promised pardon, or suspicious of the return of their wardens. Both Bellamy and Clarke knew of this, since they practically represented both sides of the conflict. However, productivity was still a necessity, and Clarke made sure that everyone was working in the camp. She believed having something to work on would help everyone ease their anxiety. Monty kept to his small plots of crops, with his miniscule team. Wells tended a bookkeeping stall to keep track of traders entering and leaving the camp, Jasper oddly took to fashioning weapons to trade, and Finn spent time in the game hut hanging all types and parts of meat to smoke, salt, or dry. Octavia took to hunting with a regular grounder named Lincoln. On any other day, Bellamy and his militia did rounds patrolling the inner grounds for crime and the outer limits for any potential threats. Today, however, they had worked hard on scavenging bullets and gunpowder, preparing for any revolt the Ark might bring. Clarke thought it was unnecessary, since the remaining ninety or so inmates wouldn't stand a chance fighting the Ark with handmade weapons while Bellamy and his crew had the only firearms.

In terms of love, Clarke hadn't seen Lexa since that day she communicated with the Ark, and it broke her heart to be so far away from Lexa for so long. They had resorted to their old form of communication though, sending each other symbols of all cultures, which had brought some comfort. Clarke wondered if Lexa had been nervous for the arrival of the Ark, and if her people were preparing for the worst, out of precaution.

The longer Clarke and Lexa were separated, the more the universe tormented them to be together. Dreams were endless and torturous, filled with images of passionate kisses, bodies pressed together, and love making. Clarke knew the lore. At first the universe would provide dreams to hint that your soulmate was in the same environment, but she had never heard of the part where after meeting them separation would cause dreams urging them to come back together. She knew how she handled waking from these dreams, and she would often blush wondering if Lexa was using the same remedy of self-pleasuring. The concept of the dreams had often made Clarke curious about soulmates in general, and how other people must be handling things. Bellamy, for example, was completely unaware of Murphy being his. That pairing baffled her, they were so different, but the universe was about balance, and attaining peace through this balance. Bellamy was hotheaded and Murphy was aggressive, maybe their pairing was meant to bring them humbleness. What were their dreams like?

Soon there was commotion in the camp, and Clarke looked up to the sky and saw the streaks in the sky of dropships entering the atmosphere. Her heart surged, thinking of nothing but everyone's hard-earned pardons. Everyone was ordered to stay inside the long houses for protection, just in case. The buildings were full of nervous and excited chatter, the wooden shutters of each long house closed shut. The impact of the drop ships vibrated in the dirt beneath their feet and shook the very foundation of the longhouses. When the world stopped shaking, Clarke was the first one to open a door and step outside. There was smoke in the air from a ship somewhere nearby.

"Let's go check it out!" Clarke said aloud, jogging away towards the suspected location of the ships. Bellamy swallowed hard as he watched her disappear into the tree lines.

"You heard her," he chimed in. "Militia, to arms and with me." He shouldered his rifle protectively and began to take after her, with Murphy, Atom, and Miller on his heels, the remaining camp gathering courage to follow as well.

It was a stampede of Skaikru, all running like a flock towards the dropship that seemed to be at least two miles away. However it didn't take the hundred long to make it to the scene, as they were over-energized with excitement. The grounders left in the camp were curious, and wanted to see these new-coming Skaikru, but knew that they had to report to their Heda and immediately galloped away.

The drop ship closest to them left a trail of flame from their rough landing, but the vessel was open and people were exiting drowsily. The hundred continued to run down the fields to greet their comrades, who were frightened to see them.

"Where's Jaha? Or Kane?" Clarke asked the shaken Arkers.

"Right here," spoke the voice of Jaha, who had stepped out of the dropship. Following close behind him was Abby and a young woman.

"Clarke!" Abby couldn't contain the cry as she reached out to embrace Clarke in a hug, who reciprocated routinely. "I'm so happy to see you."

Clarke nodded to her mother's words, yet did not give any back.

"Has the entire camp come to see us?" Jaha chuckled, looking behind Clarke to see the rest of the inmates watching anxiously.

"Well yes, we wanted to help and welcome you all to Earth," Clarke smiled. "I can't wait for you to see the camp."

"Of course, Clarke, we will. I would like to see if we can gather all the landed dropships, though," Jaha said. "We need to make sure everyone is okay first. I know you're probably eager to be finally processed as pardoned."

"You have no idea," answered someone else for her. Jaha looked around for the source of the voice and saw his son emerge from the crowd of delinquents. "It's good to see you again, dad."

In this moment, the always professional and political Thelonious couldn't help himself and briskly stepped forward to grip his son into a tight hug.

"Come, let's go find everyone else." Wells said, patting his father's back.

As they searched the five mile radius, they found five of the six drop ships sent down, and everyone was sent to the camp. The sixth was outside the five mile radius, a total of seven miles out, and Clarke and Bellamy insisted that they be the only ones to look for them, to respect Lexa's request somehow, since the five-mile radius rule was technically broken.

They had taken their horses, which astonished all the new-coming Arkers, who wanted nothing but to touch the beasts. Clarke had explained that they were one of the countless gifts from Heda Lexa, and Jaha watched the young woman fervently explain to the crowd just how benevolent and epic this Grounder Commander was. It made him uneasy. It made him feel threatened.

When Clarke and Bellamy made it to the last dropship, they found Kane amongst the group and had escorted everyone, belongings and all, with Clarke leading in front and Bellamy keeping an eye on the tail end.

When they were close to the trading post, Bellamy quickly trotted up to Clarke and made a _tsk_ sound towards her. Curious, Clarke turned to face the man riding beside her and gave him a questioning look. Bothered, Bellamy rolled up his jacket sleeve to reveal words on his wrists: _don't come back._

"What do you think it means?" Clarke whispered, knowing deep in her mind what it most likely meant, but hoped for an alternative.

"My soulmate is in the camp," Bellamy reviewed, "I've known this for some time, but both of us have agreed not to reveal ourselves until we were both ready for that confrontation. Apparently my soulmate knows more about me than I do them, and this for sure is a warning. It's not like I pissed them off and they just don't want to see my face, they're looking out for me."

"We can't just leave everyone," Clake said.

Bellamy scoffed. "Listen, everything keeps pointing to the fact that I was right. You know, honor to you for having faith in the system, but our system is broken. I can't believe you've forgotten that, since you were the one who blew the whistle back on the Ark. I'm not going."

"So you're just gonna leave your soulmate there to whatever may be happening?"

Bellamy shot her an angry look. "My soulmate wants me out of this, can't you see? Why else would they warn me?"

"You're just gonna leave Octavia?"

That got him. He snarled his lips and then kicked the sides of his horse to trot ahead of her. "You're blind, Clarke. Say goodbye to Lexa."

When they made it to the camp, Grounders were nowhere to be seen, it was just overpopulated with Arkers. There were already armed Ark guards patrolling the area, and tons of single-filed lines leading to multiple re-purposed stalls. It looked like a government invasion.

"Everyone's accounted for," Clarke said, as she found Jaha, Wells, and Abby in the midst of it all. Wells looked at her regretfully and Abby looked distraught. "What's wrong?"

"It's just time to get everything under Council control, Clarke, that's all. This is going to be a rough transition, but I promise it will all work out in the end," said Jaha with a smile.

"What do you mean?" Clarke asked.

"Take the original hundred into custody," Jaha said, projecting his voice. "They need to be taken in for questioning and processing."

"Wait, what?" baffled Clarke.

"Processing, Clarke, like I promised," Jaha answered, with his fake political smile. Her arms were brought behind her back and shackles pinched her wrists. "There are just some new crimes to account for now."

"Are you kidding me?" Clarke shouted with building rage, as all the other delinquents became violently handcuffed. "Our orders were to make sure that Earth was survivable and that we secured shelter. Mission accomplished!"

"Well you also surrendered yourself to the authority to another government. That's treason, Clarke. Twice for you. Everyone will be questioned to understand the severity of each individual's part in this."

"This is ridiculous! We invaded a land that wasn't ours! How else was this mission supposed to be secured? Through war? Lexa will be on her way soon, please don't undo everything we've worked for," Clarke pleaded, as she was dragged away towards the dropship with all the others, including Bellamy, who had be arrested trying to subtly leave with Octavia.

"Oh trust me," Jaha said, folding his hands behind his back nonchalantly. "We'll be waiting for her…"


	17. Chapter 17

Lexa arrived the evening of the landing. She had headed out the second she saw the streaks of the ships in the sky. The sight had dropped a stone in the stomachs of all her people, she knew it. Finalizing peace between these people from the sky was crucial. She donned a ceremonial tunic, that served both purposes of agile armor and relaying her status, and strapped onto her hip a long-sword. In her saddle bags she stored two bottles of their finest and strongest aged wine- a gift if all went well with the Ark Council.

She set on the journey with her usual group of officers, but assigned a dozen extra soldiers to accompany them. Ever since she found out about Clarke being her soul mate, the majority of her actions regarding Skaikru had been influenced by her lover, she knew this, but this time, Lexa felt she was able to minimize her soulbond's effects on her decisions here. The Skaikru Council coming from the sky was obviously not the same as the vagabonds they had sent to Earth to make camp. Based on Clarke's retelling of the Ark political culture, the lines were thin already- even the most sensitive of slips from Lexa could cause an outburst in the Ark Trading Post.

When she and her riders trotted into the camp on their steeds, all the new Arkers stopped their activities to watch in awe as they beheld the legendary Grounders. Uncomfortable, Lexa couldn't keep her eyebrow down as she looked down at all the ambivalent faces watching her. Not getting far into the camp, she came to a halt as two men with an air of authority stepped in front of her small band.

"You must be Commander Lexa," said one of them, with his hands composed behind his back. "I am Thelonious Jaha, Councilor of the Ark."

Since Jaha did not extend his hand in greetings, Lexa felt encouraged to stay on her stallion. Power games were in play already…

"This here," Jaha said, pointing to the man beside him, "Is Marcus Kane, he serves on the Council as well. Our other member of the Council is busy tending to our wounded elsewhere, her name is Abby Griffin, mother of Clarke, whom you already know."

"And where is _she_?" Lexa asked, boldly.

"Excuse me?" Jaha asked, his hands going back behind his back, yet leaning forward as if he struggled with hearing her.

"Where is Clarke?" Lexa asked again, this time projecting her voice. "Where is _the leader_ of this camp?" Lexa knew she was getting testy too quickly, but something in her instincts felt anxious, as if something was wrong. Why wouldn't Clarke come out to see her arrival? Soulmate bond removed- surely the person who put this alliance together would have been present.

" _The leader_ is right here," Jaha answered, implying himself.

"You were not elected by the people here."

"I was elected by _all_ of my people who were old enough to do so. These are children here according to our laws. Clarke was elected to take care of them all, _until we got here_."

Lexa could feel everyone's eyes on her as Jaha tested her. Her anger was simmering. She was not used to such bold defiance. The only thing restraining her was the thought of Clarke, and Lexa knew it shouldn't. "And above you?" Lexa asked, trying one last move.

Jaha took a few steps forward to Lexa, whose stallion didn't budge. "There's no one above me," he said almost too softly, as if betraying a hint of fear.

Lexa scoffed with a hearty faux laugh, making her riders and everyone around her shift uncomfortably. That's all she needed to go off.

" _This_ ," Lexa began, pointing down to the ground underneath her horse's hooves, "Is mine. _All_ mine. Not yours. You being the leader of a people in general, _Jaha_ , does not give you the right to just take someone's lands for your own, and act like there's nothing wrong with it. To attempt to justify stealing land by thinking that you're doing it for your people." Both Grounders and Arkers listened a like in silence. "If your Council has made you believe that me and my people are the villains, because we _took care of your people_ , then may any god out there have mercy on your naivety and stupidity."

Firmly jerking the reins of her horse's bridle, she began to turn her horse. "You have one day to restore Clarke Griffin to her station and recognize my overall status over your people. If you fail to do so, your people will simply cease to exist. You have your arrogant Councilor to thank."

And with that, Lexa ushered her horse and her band to follow her as she kicked off to a gallop into the woods, leaving the Arkers anxious with the Commander's proposal. Lexa's true motive, however, was not far off from what she spoke. However, what she really wanted to do was somehow rescue Clarke first, _and then_ bring an end to this arrogance and defiance. It was time to put her job first now. Clarke would have to accept her soulmate for who Lexa was: not simply a firm and just leader, but an unstoppable warrior.

Meanwhile, in the dropship, the original hundred, minus Wells Jaha, who was exempt from the "new crimes" for obvious reasons, were chained up on each level of the, miserable. They were shackled with their hands above their heads, and it reminded Clarke of her time in prison, wondering if it was done to keep them from communicating with any soulmates which may have been on the outside.

Clarke grew anxious, knowing that her absence would certainly set Lexa off, especially with Jaha's new turn in his leadership personality. How could the man who used to befriend her family do this? The man who had mercy on her to give her charcoal to draw with in her cell. What happened to him?

She looked around herself and saw the all too familiar faces of her typical inner circle: Bellamy, Octavia, Finn, Murphy, Jasper, and Monty hung with her with a few others, looking around dejectedly. Clarke was just happy that Bellamy wasn't pouting "I told you so" to everyone.

"So what's going to happen now?" asked Jasper, breaking the silence.

"We're going to be put on trial for doing what they wanted us to do," Monty sighed. "They've always just wanted to get rid of us. It probably rubbed salt in their wounds to show people that we, _criminals_ , could change. Float us in space, or execute us on Earth. It always came down to this. A new world never promised us a new way of life. Not this early on, at least."

"We're going to get out of here," Clarke said.

"And how is that, exactly?" Murphy asked. "We haven't been granted a meal, and I'm pretty sure they're not going to spoon-feed us. Chances are, after they're done shooing Lexa away- because I'm pretty sure that's what they're gonna do- they'll probably round us all up for a group trial, and we'll be dead by tomorrow at the latest."

"We're getting out," said Octavia this time, "My soulmate is going to come get us."

The level of the dropship went silent.

"Who?" Bellamy asked, the traditional air of a protective brother arising.

"Lincoln, I'm sure you've all met him at one time or another," Octavia stated boldly.

"A Grounder?" Bellamy asked, stunned by this oddly recurring theme. "Hell, mine's probably one too, at this rate."

"What do you mean?" curiously asked Murphy. "What do you mean by 'at this rate'?"

Bellamy bit the inside of his own cheek to punish himself for letting such a subtle comment slip. "Nothing," he replied, "I've just… I've just heard of others from our group finding Grounder soulmates."

Clarke felt her heart beating anxiously in her chest. She was tired of keeping a secret, and she found herself almost wanting Bellamy to spill it.

"Does Lincoln have a direct audience with Lexa?" Clarke asked, after taking a deep breath.

"Not direct," Octavia replied, "but he's not stranger to her, if that's good enough."

"It is," Clarke said. "We need to get something to write with, somehow. If you can't reach your soulmate, then I will."

Clarke could feel the ominous air of realization weigh in the room.

"You mean to tell me…" Octavia began, already in disbelief.

"Lexa," Clarke clarified, "I'll have to write to her too."


	18. Chapter 18

The trial was immediately at the start of dawn the following morning, and Clarke's stomach twisted at the peculiar absence of Lexa. She had felt the messages from her soulmate gracing her arms the whole night. No doubt Lexa was worried. Clarke was only allowed to see some of them when her arms were removed from hanging above her head, as they transported her to the trial. It was endearing and heartbroken to see the entire hundred lined up for court and all their arms completely covered with the words of concerned soulmates. Clarke hoped it would wring out some sympathy from the crowd.

The head judge was none other than Jaha himself, however he seemed to listen to the crowd's influence every now and then, probably just to seem like a man-of-the-people. None of the original hundred were being instantly pardoned, yet many faced small punishments, such as one year of incarceration, or countless hours of community service. These lucky souls seemed to be ecstatic over their sentences, but in comparison to the Ark's traditional justice system of instant capital punishment, Clarke could see why.

"The Ark Council calls upon Bellamy Blake, for his trial," spoke up Jaha. The crowd murmured in excitement and distaste. Doing his best to keep his head up, Bellamy walked in front of Jaha and presented himself to the onlookers. "Mr. Blake, you are charged with attempted murder, treason, and conspiracy to thwart Ark Government progress, how do you plead?"

"Not guilty," Bellamy projected clearly.

"It has been confirmed by your peers that you worked alongside the Grounder Commander Lexa, and even agreed to be subjugated by her, this constitutes as treason. It has been confirmed by myself and the security systems of the Ark that you critically wounded me with a firearm, this constitutes as attempted murder, and a secondary charge of treason, since I am the chancellor. You smuggled yourself on-board the Hundred Dropship, risking the success of the mission, this is your charge of conspiracy to thwart. Your plea is invalid. I sentence you to death by hanging. You will be executed at the end of this entire court process of the entire hundred. Guards, take him away."

The crowd erupted in agreement, shouting obscenities at the young man as he was being taken away, and while Clarke was baffled at the murder charges, she couldn't help but notice Octavia's cry from amongst the prisoners' line.

"The Ark calls upon Clarke Griffin, for her trial," continued Jaha with this never-ending routine. Clarke stepped forward, her hands bound in front of her. "Ms. Griffin, you are charged with two counts of treason, one which you are already serving, and a second one which has been charged against you for surrendering the hundred to the Grounder Commander Lexa and agreeing to be subjugated by her. How do you plead?"

"Not guilty," Clarke answered, in Bellamy's proud fashion. "I have served my previous charge, it cannot be held against me, and it should not be held against the rest of us for that matter. You said that if we accomplished our missions we would be pardoned. Why are you punishing people for their crimes again? Everyone who was assigned this mission was already serving their incarceration, we should not have to be forced back into it."

"You do not have the right to discuss the justice system, since your citizenship is soiled in treason. You have lost your main rights." Jaha briefed calmly, hoping his tone would calm the ambivalent crowd. "Did you or did you not agree to follow the terms set by Commander Lexa?"

"I did. But because it ensured peace. Lexa said so herself- in time, if we were peaceful she would let us have free-reign on our own petitioned piece of land."

"You are naïve, Clarke. She was just tricking you-"

"She would have killed us from the start if she meant any harm!" Clarke's voice silenced the entire stage and crowd. Her outburst had sealed her sentence.

"Clarke Griffin, I sentence you to death by hanging, alongside Bellamy Blake this night." Clarke's stomach flipped with anxiety and anger. She could hear her mother start to protest from the crowd, only to be silenced by Jaha's authority. Being pushed by the guards, she was roughly escorted to stand beside Bellamy as they watched the rest of the trial. Bellamy did not say a word, as even he knew that saying 'I told you so' was not necessary. Death was coming, and there was no point for competitiveness.

As they watched the trail, they were not surprised to find that they were going to end up being the only ones to be executed, because there were only thirty delinquents left, and those already tried received short determinate sentences.

"Bellamy," whispered a woman who stood inconspicuously behind him.

Bellamy turned his head sluggishly, vigor not present in his spirit. Clarke too turned to see the mysterious voice. It was none other than Diana Sydney, politician of the Ark.

"I'm going to get you out of here, don't worry," she began to whisper. "Our work is not finished. We can still do this. Together." Clarke raised an eyebrow, putting some pieces together, but still feeling in the dark. Sydney continued "If you still want to be a part of my coup, I will save you tonight."

"Save Clarke too," his voice cracking for a second. Diana inspected Clarke briefly, almost as if in disgust.

"Why?"

"Because you're going to need her if you want Jaha dead. Trust me."

Clarke was silent, not wanting to feed into Bellamy's planning. She suspected what this meant, and she wasn't sure how she felt about having Lexa aid Bellamy and a corrupt politician.

"Clarke and I have direct access to the Commander, Clarke more so than me. Why do you think Lexa stated to the crowd to have Clarke restored to her station and not me too?"

Diana shrugged. "Fine, if those are your terms."

"Give me a pen," Bellamy said, his voice becoming a barely audible whisper.

"Why?"

"Just do it."

Diana subtly slipped a pen into his tied hands, as everyone was more concerned with the ongoing trails than those who had already been sentenced. Bellamy moved closer to Clarke and stood very close to her and handed the pen to her equally bound hands. He was giving Clarke privacy and cover to write to Lexa. Clicking the pen in her hand, Clarke clumsily pressed the pen against the palm of her left hand and began to write: _they're going to execute me and Bellamy tonight_.

Lexa had been trying to lounge in her tent as she awaited news from her riders. She was preparing for the worst. She had her small band of riders with her, a perfect size for a flash raid, but had sent a courier to the nearest military camp. She was going to need an army soon. She had wondered if Jaha and his people would really put Clarke back in power, and began to ponder each possible outcome and reason, filling her head with multiple strategies to fall back on should one fail.

Her left palm began to tingle, and like the speed of light, Lexa sat up quickly to inspect it, hoping it was words from her silent soulmate. When she saw the words her heart stopped and her eyes grew wide. Hectically, she grabbed a quill and responded: _I'm on my way._

Getting up from her lounge in her tent, she rushed outside to assemble her riders. They would have to wait for the incoming army later. Right now, they had a crucial extraction mission to complete.

Clarke's heart had initially washed over in hope and comfort at Lexa's speedy response, but she did not know how far away her lover was. Would she even make it down to the camp in time? And to weed through the incredibly dense Ark population without getting held up?

These questions soon became truth as the sun had finally disappeared and a thick and itchy noose was tied around her neck. She found herself praying to the universe for even Sydney to come through. Clarke could see the politician and a suspicious band of guards assemble by her as the time came closer to the execution. A small group of citizens even came out. Just like the old west, here to watch the hangings.

Abby had arrived, so had Kane, and Wells. Clarke shook, feeling like she had begun suffocating already. Ordered to stand on the chairs brought before them, the long rope was tossed over a sturdy branch of a gargantuan tree. Clarke thought she might be able to keep it together until she heard a stifled and strangled sob come from beside her. Bellamy's head was hanging low on his chest, thick streams of tears trailing down his cheeks. Looking about him to find the cause, she saw the words _goodbye_ written on his outer wrist. She could only imagine the thoughts in Bellamy's head. He had told her that he suspected his soulmate knew who he was, but wasn't ready to figure out himself. Now, he probably wished he knew.

It also reminded her of how this all started, and how Clarke had tried to send that exact farewell to Lexa before being sent to Earth.

Jaha soon arrived, speaking something ceremonial- Clarke couldn't tell, her mind was ringing. As Clarke watched the crowd, she noticed their faces were very ambivalent and worried. Jaha too had noticed. Stopping his words, he looked around him, as if afraid there was something behind him.

All of a sudden, the executioner standing by Clarke and Bellamy dropped to his knees, then fell to the floor, a broad arrow stuck in his back, which had protruded out of his chest. Many in the crowd shrieked, and both prisoners looked around them, hope filling their spirits. From the tree line a few yards away, at least a dozen Grounders on horseback charged through, some brandishing short swords, some pikes, and others daunting longbows. Within this group of guerrilla warriors was none other than Lexa herself, her elegant long-sword poised ready. Clarke's knees unfortunately wobbled at the sight of her beloved savior, causing her to lose her balance. The chair beneath her feet rocked, and Clarke frantically tried to stabilize it with her stance.

The crowd tried to disperse in their frenzied state, running here and there, trampling over each other. Lexa's band cut down any resistance in their way, Ark guards falling to the ground as blood flushed and sprayed all over the grass. Jaha on the other hand had huddled with some guards for protection, yet was urging them all to recapture Clarke and Bellamy, or to at least kick their chairs. Sprinting across the field, a guard make it to the two youths and did just that, tripping the chairs as quickly as he could.

Clarke and Bellamy yanked down abruptly, the nooses failing to break their necks. Writhering for air, Clarke's legs jerked around, her rational leaving her as she tried to breathe.

She could hear Lexa shout in dismay, and soon she felt herself being held up, air making its way to her lungs. A few Grounders stepped aside from the assault and had swarmed the tree, protecting their Heda as Lexa took out her dagger to cut Clarke's rope, efficiently multitasking as she held her up.

"Bellamy," Clarke croaked.

"Someone else is taking him down," Lexa sputtered, the rope finally giving way to the sharpness of her weapon. As she slowly brought Clarke to her feet, thunderous cracks filled the sky and Lexa shouted in pain.

Gunfire.

Clutching her forearm, Lexa ignored her wound, not wanting to register any pain from the sight of it just yet. Projecting her voice across the small battlefield, she shouted something in Trigedasleng, and Clarke assumed it was a retreat, as all the Grounders hurried to mount their horses. As Clarke was poorly helped by Lexa to mount her horse, she could see Bellamy being assisted as well, sharing a saddle with a warrior. Soon Lexa squeezed herself behind Clarke and spurred her horse, and all the Grounders took off in the direction they came from.

The party knew that they would be followed for some part of the escape, but no one bothered to turn around to look, and kept their eyes on the woodland ahead of them. In the chase party was Kane and a few guards, tailed by a hysterical Abby. Naturally, the woman had followed not to apprehend her daughter, but to see her get away. Kane knew that there was no way they could find the Grounder party on foot, and in their panic to follow Jaha's orders to follow Lexa, they forgot to take Clarke and Bellamy's mares. But they carried on for a few hours, wanting a little breathing room from the chaos at the camp, and just to hopefully gather some intel and not return empty handed. They had split up to cover certain paths into the woods. No party was lucky… except for Abby, who had trailed off on her own.

Lead by a mother's intuition, Abby let herself navigate the woods through instincts, and soon came to a complete halt. She could hear something. Creeping slowly so that she would not give away her position, she moved closer- there were voices, and none in English. Her heart beat quickly. The closer she got, the more was revealed to her. At least seventy yards away from her was a Grounder camp being built. Her eyes scanned the population for familiar faces, and soon came across the sight of Lexa, sitting on a tree stump as a Grounder cleansed an open wound on her arm. Abby's eyesight had always been prime, and the doctor could tell even from her distance, that the Commander had gotten lucky with a bullet wound that had simply cut across her arm.

Clarke had to be somewhere near. As if on cue, her daughter had stepped out of tent, rubbing her neck with a rag, which was probably doused in some kind of pain relieving mixture. Abby hoped the Grounder physicians would know how to properly take care of her daughter- a failed neck break wasn't the kind of injury to allow the patient to go walking around a few hours after. Abby wanted to cross the field and take care of her child, but knew that it would not be safe for her, and she also did not want to cause a commotion, which would give Kane and his soldiers an idea to where her daughter was hiding.

Yet the doctor watched, letting herself be relieved at the sight of her daughter in caring hands and being tended to. She even watched as the Grounders began to clear away from their Commander, preparing their own camp necessities, leaving Lexa and Clarke alone. Standing up, the Commander placed herself tall and firm in front of Clarke. She said something, but Abby couldn't hear it. It must have been something pleasant though, as Clarke smiled and put down the rag she was using to massage her neck. Then Clarke stepped closer to the Commander and placed her hands behind Lexa's neck, and pulled the woman towards her for a passionate kiss. Abby's heart spiked at this unexpected turn of events, yet it all started to rapidly make sense to her. Taking a few steps backwards, Abby shook the image from her mind, not upset over her daughter having someone to love, but out of sorrow for Clarke, who just had to be so lucky to love the enemy.

The next morning, the Grounder camp was awake before the sun rose. They had to make their way to a rendezvous point to meet up with the army Lexa had summoned. It was of most importance that they made it before any Arkers tried to catch up, if they were still on their trail. Lexa had ordered that both Clarke and Bellamy be given an ample breakfast before the trip, and had decided herself to take a moment to think by a nearby stream. Clarke had finished her food quickly, to her surprise. She had assumed that her near-death experience would make her lose her appetite. However, when finished, the sun was up and she decided to go for a brief walk herself, to rid of anxious energy.

Sometimes there are no words for certain feelings that manifest in the human heart. Just like there are no words, sometimes there are no memories to retrace to understand how you got somewhere. Her heart sought its other half.

Deep in the dense woods, she found Lexa filling up a canteen by a clear peaceful stream. When her lover heard her approaching, she did not snap to attention, like a warrior in solitude would. Instead, she just simply knew. She stood up from her kneeling with ease, and held the canteen in both her hands and just simply gazed up Clarke. Words were not exchanged between the two, yet the feeling of such strong auras was being exchanged with just looking at each other.

Clarke leaned back against a sturdy tree, her hands holding onto the naturally splintered layers of bark, not finding the strength to take another step. Knowing Lexa was her soulmate was one thing, but today, Clarke felt it. She was speechless and rendered weak, her heart fluttering joyously at the sight of her beautiful destiny.

Twigs slowly snapped underneath the heels of Lexa's boots as she made her way over to Clarke. She placed the canteen cautiously on the earth, and then raised herself back up to be level with Clarke. Clarke's mouth was mute, but her soul was radiant with expression. Lexa leaned in and placed a chaste kiss on Clarke's lips. Still clinging to the tree behind her, Clarke leaned in herself when she felt Lexa pull away, her body language urging Lexa to return to her. And so she did. Lexa kissed her deeply, then moved her affections to Clarke's neck, placing shivering kisses on the soft skin. Clarke let go of the tree and found her arms sliding up Lexa's back for support, also resulting in their bodies becoming flush with each other. As they breathed between escalating kisses, Clarke's eyes fluttered every now and then, taking in the world around her.

There was something about this experience. The trees whispered as the warm spring winds passed through them, the sun casting its warmth and light all around them, shimmering the nearby stream – and her lover pressing against her, rubbing against her, kissing her. Lexa's hands began to caress Clarke's abdomen and grip her hips a bit firmer- Clarke's breath hitched, taking in the pure air. Reciprocating a step further, Clarke pulled at Lexa's tunic, shedding it from her lover's shoulders, leaving Lexa in a simple shirt and trousers. Lexa's hands slid under Clarke's shirt, skirting against warm skin, and confidently kneed her soulmate's breasts, eliciting a feeble moan form Clarke. Overjoyed from love, Clarke reached down the hem of her shirt and pulled the clothing over her head, exposing her chest to the world. She pulled Lexa's face towards her again for another kiss, and leaned against the tree. Hissing at the feeling of the bark against her smooth skin, Clarke immediately pushed them both forward. After a quick chuckle at the incident, both Clarke and Lexa took a chance glance into each other's eyes, communicating soulfully. But it was clear that the two women were ready for this.

Freeing herself form their embrace, Lexa picked up her tunic from the ground for a brief second, only to lay it down open and straight on the grass floor beneath them. Turning back to Clarke, she took her lover's hand and led her down on the ground to lie on top of the durable cloth. She would have laid down beside Clarke, but Lexa was pulled on top of her soulmate the second Clarke was situated. The kissing and gluttonous touching returned in satisfied frenzy, their hearts and minds overstimulated with not just lust, but unbridled love- everything pent up and desired finally spilling out to heal their yearning, like licking wounds.

Soon all articles of clothing were shed and the women moved against each other in their natural form, making love in the middle of the world. Against the grass and the loose dirt, away from any signs of society, their consummation felt so natural yet so animal, as nature intended all of its creations to come together against the earth.

Clarke was trembling. Her legs spread for Lexa to be settled between them, and feeling her lover push and pull inside of her with practiced fingers. She had never felt more loved in her life. She figured it had something to do with their soulmate factor. She could hear Lexa's breath shake constantly as she pleasured Clarke. Not a word was ever spoken, yet cries of gratification and need faintly echoed through the trees. Soon Lexa straddled Clarke's thigh, creating a rhythm for herself as she impressively maintained her stroking of Clarke's inner sex. In ecstasy, Clarke wanted to please her lover, and reached her hand down her thigh and cupped Lexa for a second before applying circular pressure against her soulmate's clit.

Needless to say, it did not take long for the women to topple over each other, holding on for comfort as their orgasms destroyed any sense of control, rippling pleasure inside of them, causing them to press more desperately against each other, their bodies urging more and more fulfillment within them. They laid together for a countless amount of time, before the euphoria finally released their minds.

The others would be looking for them soon, and they needed to keep making distance between them and the Arkers. With a kiss full of jubilation, Clarke rose from the ground and pulled Lexa to stand beside her. Feeling fulfillment that love had been made, both women knew that this was only the start to their physical relationship, and that their first time together couldn't have been any more perfect. Naked, they gathered their clothing, bumping into each other like the young lovers they were, stalling out this moment of happiness; for they were young, but wise enough to know that happiness would now be scarce.


	19. Chapter 19

The Dropship campsite had been complete pandemonium since the daring rescue attempt of Clarke and Bellamy, and when the search parties finally returned to base they found a whole new kind of chaos to tame. It would be a n unproductive day as everyone was amok, there were men and women demanding Jaha do something, anything, to keep them safe. Some demanded to let the delinquents go, right now, some demanded to surrender to Lexa, and some were just as stubborn as the chancellor himself saying they needed to fight back.

Council politicians attempted their jobs of calming the rabble, but one group in particular was led by Diana Sydney. She had an agenda of her own, and had been waiting for the right time to officially start her campaign. She planned on overthrowing Jaha and hoped that Bellamy would tell the Grounder Commander Lexa about her attempts to free him and Clarke. She knew the Grounders would be back, it was only a matter of time. Perhaps getting the population under control and putting Thelonious in custody would put her in good graces with the Commander and put her in the position of chancellor once more.

When she had enough people in her crowd eating up her speeches and feeding into her mindset, she decided to light the fuse.

"We had the chance for peace," she projected, "the hundred sealed it for us, and we gave into fear! People say, 'if something is too good to be true, it usually is', but in this case, in this _one in a million case_ we truly had the best situation. And we lost it due to paranoia! We cannot allow this again!" The crowd cheered and hollered. "I believe we have a chance to be safe again. We must give the grounders what they want and follow the terms they set, that our children struggled to put together for us. We must free the hundred! It is the first step we must take!"

"Free the hundred! Free the hundred!" the crowd chanted and grew louder, moving towards the processing center that had been established a few hours earlier. The Hundred were being held here. Patrolling guards who heard the commotion made their way. They couldn't possibly have citizens going against the chancellor. They pushed and pulled within the rowdy crowd, trying to arrest those within, even trying to make it to Sydney. But the crowd wouldn't have it and a riot broke out. Arkers, fueled by hysteria, began to fight the guards, pushing against them and shoving them to the ground. The guards tried to get back up on their feet, but there were more citizens than them, and were overwhelmed immediately. Arkers ripped guns out of their hands, pulled off ammo belts, and began bashing the stocks of rifles into the faces and abdomens of the authority. More guards made their way to the anarchy, trying to help their fellow soldiers, but too were overrun. Catching glimpses of the turmoil, Jaha was escorted away and into the drop ship with a handful of armed guards, the door sealed from the inside.

When Clarke, Lexa and Bellamy had made it to the rendezvous point of the responding Grounder infantry, no time was wasted. However, to Clarke's disappointment, the military camp was being led by Manu, the Ice Nation ambassador.

"Heda," Manu greeted, placing his hands on his hips, "It is a pleasure to come to your aid. Although, I must say, I saw this coming. I told you Skaikru would rebel."

"Now is not the time for I-told-you-so, Manu. The problem is not Skaikru, but their leader, Jaha. He's on a desperate measuring contest, if I've ever seen one," Lexa grunted, not taking Manu's boasting.

"Of course, Heda," Manu smirked.

"Have your warriors ready as soon as possible, I need to see all the officers to discuss or plan." Lexa had ignored Clarke and Bellamy during this exchange. She planned on leaving them out of the battle too. "See to it that Clarke and Bellamy check in once more with a healer. I want to make sure that they are on their way to a quick recovery."

Manu partially bowed at the command.

"Lexa," started Clarke, as Lexa began to put distance between them. "Bellamy and I want to go with you to fight."

"You can't, Clarke," Lexa answered, stopping her retreat. "The both of you not fit to fight. Besides, you are the only Skaikru leaders I trust. When this is all over, I need to make sure I can place you back into power. I can't do that if one of you dies." The Commander turned back around and resumed walking away, leaving the two Arkers in Manu's care.

The Azgeda man lead them to a tent where healers were preparing their satchels full of bandages, leaves, and tonics, ready for the clash at the dropship. Manu sent Bellamy to have his spine and neck examined first, while Clarke stood beside the ambassador, a thick tension obvious to them both.

"I know this battle must mean a lot to you, Clarke,' Manu spoke softly, not turning to look at her, but instead kept watching Bellamy a few feet away. "I'm sure the reason why you want to fight is to make sure certain people that you care about don't get hurt… or worse. Am I right?"

Clarke swallowed, feeling parched with annoyance. "Where are you going with this?" she answered back, using the same cautious volume Manu used.

"Well, as much as I don't trust your people as a collective whole, I personally can't stand the idea of someone not being able to fight for their own cause. In the Ice Nation, if a warrior wants to fight, we don't deny them that wish. I won't get in the way of you fighting for what you want to be a part of, the Heda shouldn't have either, but… sensitive politics. I will tell the Heda that I let you and Bellamy rest at this camp, but if you wish, I will have you come in with the rear lines, far away from her in the formation."

"You would really sneak us in?" Clarke asked, intrigued but still knowing better.

"Of course."

"Is it because you want us to die?"

"Clarke," Manu huffed a laugh, "I already told you why. Everyone knows that if a person wants to fight, they can die. You want to fight, therefore you can die, that's just the probability of battle. It has nothing to do with some ulterior motive."

Clarke studied his face. There was a twitch in his smirk, but Clarke assumed it to be just a part of his natural mischievous nature.

"Again… you would sneak us in and not tell Lexa? What if she finds us?"

"Then you tell her you escaped. It's not that hard, Clarke."

Clarke felt herself flush a bit, bothered.

"I will sneak you in because my Azgeda culture controls so much of me. I only ask one thing in return."

"Which is?" Clarke asked, knowing this was coming.

"Many Azgeda will wear their clan symbol on them somehow during battle. Whether it be painted on their skin or clothes, or etched into their sword. If you are going to war with us, respect our war customs. Go find yourself a chest-plate and etch the Skaikru symbol on it, or just draw it on yourself to be quicker. Think about it…" Manu began to separate himself from Clarke, walking away. "Tell Bellamy that he has to wear his crest as well if he wants to join. I will come back before we leave…"

Back at the Ark Dropship, Sydney's reign was short-lived. Fear returned to the hearts of the Arkers. Fed up with taking shelter in the ship, Jaha had sent some of his guards out to exercise power. They did so by shooting any Arker with a gun, since many had stolen rifles after assaulting the authority during the brief riot. The bodies were left on the ground. No one was allowed to move them.

All of the Hundred that had been freed from their "cells" or community service stations were in the process of being re-shackled.

Diana Sydney was taken captive. A public execution to deal with later, Right now, Jaha had to focus on rounding up his people, and prepare for any retaliation from the Grounders.

Before Jaha could even feel remotely comfortable about his perimeter defenses, the Arkers began to murmur and shout, crying that a Grounder had been spotted. A hefty amount of yards away, the Grounder Lincoln galloped out of the tree line and into the billowing tall blades of grass. In his hand he waved a white flag with the Trigeda symbol on it. He galloped up and down the field, creating a loop.

"Arkers!" he shouted, still trotting back and forth. He was making it hard for any sharpshooter to snipe him with his constant movements. "Our Heda Lexa, Commander of the Twelve Clans, extends her wings of protection for those willing to acknowledge her as their leader. This is your last chance. Any Arker who leaves now and comes with me to the forest will not be harmed, but accepted into our community. This is your last chance. Those who remain, will not face much mercy."

The camp grew quiet as Lincoln waited, and all that could be heard were the galloping of his steed's stamping hooves. Arkers looked at each other, wondering who would move first, if anyone would move.

Waiting in line to be shackled with the others, Octavia Blake saw Lincoln and wasn't going to be offered twice. Not looking towards anyone, she took off, running past shocked eyes. She was halfway towards Lincoln when others began to take off too, following the infamous sibling.

Lincoln kept his sporadic trot going, even as Octavia ran towards him, he had to make sure he was always a moving target.

Then gunfire cracked across the sky and an Arker tumbled to the ground. Those in the camp began to scream, retreating further and further from the outskirts of the camp, huddling in the middle in a frightened show of obedience to Jaha.

Then another went down by a bullet, then another. Lincoln watched Octavia fall to the ground, unharmed, but clever, hoping to be mistaken as a casualty. He looked at her apprehensively, but she mouthed to him to retreat.

Straightening up in his saddle, he held the Trigeda flag up as he continued to gallop. "The Heda shall know of this! Take heed, the war has begun! Your death comes!" He spurred his horse with his heels, pressing deep into the animal's side, and took off back into the trees.

"Set up a sniping perimeter and a front line of riflemen!" Jaha commanded frantically.

Guards amassed in their ordered areas, the sound of a thousand hooves and chants approaching from the trees…


End file.
